The Fated Partings
by ashlyns
Summary: 4 years after the rescue of the pearl, Jack has contracted a sickness that threatens his very life. With the help of old friends, Jack will battle new enimies to save his very life, or unleash a power more evil then the gold of Cortes. COMPLETE!
1. Chills

Hey! My name is Ashlyns and I'm a fanfic-aholic! Anyway, this is my second ff! Thank you, thank you...my first on was about revenge, this one's about life and trying to keep it while battling with yourself and those around you. I love Jack so he is my main character with help from everyone else. Please read and tell your friends. If you like it, read my other one to but...you don't have to...it's not the law or anything... -ashlyns  
  
Ch. One- Chills and Nightmares  
  
The milky moon was completely obscured by cloud and no matter how hard the wind breathed, it couldn't knock the shroud away as the storm raged and water drops the size of miserable bullets beat down from the sky, black and cold as ice.  
  
The rain beat heavy on the deck of the Black Pearl, her sails ripping with the force, the cables whining in complaint and the main mast almost bending in the wind. Many of the men were tying ropes about their waists so as to stay with the ship if the event happened there was a large wave washing them overboard.  
  
The crew knew though that their captain, Jack Sparrow, would stop for nothing. The storm seemed to delight him; the danger brought him alive. There was a gleam in his eyes because this was an enemy he couldn't kill, but he sure could out wait her...beat her.  
  
"I say he's more crazy then before." Gibbs yelled over the roaring wind to the woman who worked beside him tightening the sails. The moon was cast over by the dark clouds but the lightning illuminated her dark skin and grim face. She looked up at the captain who stood at the helm, no visible rope keeping him to the deck of his beloved ship. It was as if he trusted the ship not to let him slip away again.  
  
"Aye!" She yelled back. Anamaria watched her captain, taking in his smaller frame, the heavy jacket he wore hiding his build. His damp dark brown dreadlocks whipped around his handsome face in the wind, most of it though was held in place by a red bandana. Many beads and decorations adorned his hair along with his beard, which was parted into two small braids with a bead at the end of each. He wore a red sash around his waist securing his pistol and a few shots along with a sword. His boots came to just under his knees and were right now water logged. But, to Anamaria, there was nothing more attractive on a man then deep beautiful eyes and Jack...well, Jack had them in spades. His eyes were a dark shade of brown; the lids themselves lined with kohl making them stand out.  
  
She had known Jack for a few years. They had met in Tortuga, a rough settlement and Jack's favorite town. She had fallen in love with him that day, until he took her boat. She'd vowed that day to never fall in love with him again, it had been hard to be sure but, living with a ship of other men, she had to act like one or die. Now though, as second in control to the Black Pearl, the responsibilities kept her mind off her captain and on other things. Besides, this little ship was better then her little boat. Jack was a weird man, it was true. Many thought he was crazy others admired him thinking he was a genius in disguise. Personally, Anamaria thought he was mad but that had never stopped her from liking him. Jack, she knew, was very intelligent. He was always one step ahead of everyone.  
  
Gibbs was watching her and she realized she had been staring at the captain for a while. She looked a Gibbs, a squat overweight man with a graying beard and said, "Well, what are you looking at? Get back to work." Gibbs returned to the ropes and Anamaria made her way past men and over a rocking deck with one idea in her mind. 'Get to Jack and tie him down. Whatever it took.'  
  
As she reached down to grab a coil of rope from the deck, a massive wave crashed down apon the deck sweeping her off her feet. Under the strong rush of water she felt her heart racing and the wave pulling her like a rag doll across the wooden deck. Holding her breath deep in her throat, she caught glimpses of the clouds and flashes of lightning before the world stopped moving. The rope around her waist had caught and she got up quickly, the extra rope miraculously still clamped in her hand.  
  
The wave had done one good thing though; it had brought her closer to the stairwell and the wheel. Checking that everything was still in place, Anamaria swiftly crossed the deck and mounted the stairs as another wave surged across the deck, the water just high enough top nip at her ankles.  
  
She reached the wheel and was surprised to hear, even over the screaming wind, Jack's voice singing. He must have been almost screaming because she caught every word of it. "We pillage, we plunder, we rifle, we loot. Drink Up me 'eartise Yo Ho! Something, something...devils and black sheep, really bad eggs, drink up me 'earties Yo Ho!"  
  
She grasped his shoulder as the ship lurched, almost sending her toppling sideways into the rail. Jack, unsteady on his feet at the best of times, was caught by the rope around her waist and almost pulled sideways too. When they'd both regained their balance, Jack yelled, "Careful luv, don't want ye fallen off do we?" Anamaria bristled. "Don't call me luv!" She screamed. She knew Jack was smiling, even if she couldn't see his face. "Cap'n, I think we should stop...wait out the storm." Jack turned suddenly to face her, rain dripping off chin and casting specks over his darkened face. He glanced at the tossing waves, lit up in the lightning and then turned to the deck again where the men struggled with the ropes and a few of the crates slid across the deck in the waves. Jack looked back at her as though worried for her sanity. "What? Why?" He asked. Anamaria was startled. It was as though Jack saw this storm as a light breezy cool night, with calm seas and a small amount of rain. Anamaria looked deep into his eyes.  
  
"Cap'n, it's getting dangerous. We should bunker down and stay like that till the storm has past." Jack shook his head, still smiling.  
  
"The Pearl is fine, she's been through worse." He placed his hands on her shoulders and marched her two steps backwards. "Savvy?"  
  
She knew she would never win, Jack was just too stubborn to let her. She sighed in resignation and nodded. As he turned back to the wheel though she grabbed his jacket and stopped him. "First," She yelled, "We'll tie this to you, so you don't get washed away." As she started tying the rope though, Jack pushed her hand away.  
  
"No, Ana...I won't go over mate, I'm Captain Jack Spar..." Before he could finish though, a wave crashed over the side of the Pearl. Anamaria got a fleeting glimpse of Jack being knocked off his feet before the water encompassed her. She foolishly tried to yell out but water streamed into her mouth choking off any noise. Holding her breath, she was surprised when a strong grip suddenly took hold of her hand and her body stopped with a giant jerk. Wrapping her hands around her support, she waited until the water had completely washed away and then looked into the eyes of her Captain. He'd saved her from being washed over the stair well.  
  
"Jack!" She yelled in surprise. They were both lying on their stomachs, Jack's hands wrapped around her wrists, her right hand gripping his as she hung half over the edge of the stairwell. Jack, she now saw, had a rope tied to his ankle and was hanging there, connected to the wheel. He was freezing and even as she watched, he gave violent shudders. She wasn't that cold. "Your soaked."  
  
"If you haven't noticed, luv." Jack said, his gaze still fixed on her face. "You are to." Anamaria blinked stupidly as salt spray stung her in the face...that was true. "And, it's Captain." Jack pulled her roughly back on to the top deck and then let go, struggling to his feet in his soaked and heavy coat. Anamaria also managed to get up, still watching Jack. He took the wheel. "We'll continue."  
  
Anamaria stood there for a few minutes and then looked down at the rope in her hand. With out asking him, she marched over, wrapped her arms around his waist and tied the roped securely to him. Then she took the end and tied it to the wheel's support strut. Jack, to her surprise, didn't argue but waited patiently until she was satisfied. Anamaria walked away with a smile on her face and didn't hear his voice call after her because he was speaking under his breath, "Thank ye, luv." Sighing, he began to sing again, "Yo Ho, Yo Ho, a pirates life for me..."  
  
Bootstrap struggled against his bindings as he began to sink beneath the waves, his heart was racing, and his mind calling out for someone to help him but no help came. He looked up to the surface and saw the sun shine apon the liquid blue Caribbean, he may never see that again.  
  
'Well, really think about it Bill.' Said a fair voice in his head as the black bottom of the Black Pearl slipped farther and farther away. 'What did you think they were going to do, after you sent a piece of gold to William? What did you think they were going to do after you said they should be cursed? That they deserved to be cursed? Oh course they could betray you, look what they did to Jack...' His heart sank as fast as his body, Jack. How could he have sat there and watched it happen as they had done that to one of his closest friends. That had been a while ago, Jack was definitely dead unless he had managed another one of his miracles, which Bill really doubted.  
  
'Poor Will, I'll never see him again, I'll never watch him grow up, I'll never know what type of man he turns out to be whether he'll be married and have children. I'm so sorry Will.' He looked down at his Bootstraps hating Barbossa. There was no way to untie them, his hands were bound tightly and so were his feet. To bad they hadn't done this when he was a skeleton or near night but, in the middle of the day...  
  
He thought of his life, about how happy he had been when William had been born, about the day he had joined the Pearl, the day he had met Jack, his first visit to Tortuga, his first time commandeering a vessel...the first time he had met Barbossa.  
  
'Give up the location Jack.' Barbossa had said to Jack not to long ago, before they were to arrive at Isla de Muerta. They had been already planning the mutiny, Bill had even known. He had felt guilty, not telling his friend but this was how he was supporting his family, he couldn't loose this job, it was how he was supporting his family. Looking around, he realized bitterly, life was better under Jack. The men thought he was crazy and indeed a push over, but he was fair. They never called him Jack, something he had never been too strict on. He never liked to kill and if he had to, he made the quick, cheating usually. He never had a problem with cheating whether it meant life or death. He had a one-track mind, which would get him into a lot of trouble some day.  
  
'Was...had...he was a good man and had a one-track mind.' Bill corrected himself. He looked through his floating curtain of hair up towards the surface again. Barbossa's voice rang in his ears again. 'Everything is of equal share right? Should not also the location be?' Jack had closed the broken compass thoughtfully and had looked at Barbossa through his dark eyes as though searching him through. The crew had watched even if they hadn't appeared to be doing so by continuing with their everyday tasks.  
  
Jack had been a young captain and rather foolish. Bootstrap and him had shared a cabin when they had first joined the Black Pearl, and Bill knew all his secrets. Notorious for having his bootstraps continuously untied; Jack had given him his nickname. Bill had pushed away his own guilt to listen as he mopped the deck.  
  
'The location?' Jack had asked uncertainly. Barbossa had nodded and Jack had looked away across the ocean as if to give himself time to think. This had been the biggest treasure they had gone after, the Aztec gold of Cortez himself! This was big, the biggest even if there may be a curse. No one of course was wary of a curse. Who had ever heard of cursed gold before? Jack looked again at Barbossa and then had looked pointedly down at Bill as though asking for his opinion. Bill had shrugged and continued mopping, part of his mind screaming No Jack, the other greedily hopping he would give up the map or something.  
  
'Okay, your right. Come to my cabin, I'll show you.' He had beckoned Bill over and handed him control of the wheel. Bill had watched them go, Barbossa walking calmly behind Jack who like usual was swaggering badly as though he was drunk. Bill hadn't known quite what to think. Maybe they would drop Jack at a port and leave him there but part of him had known that wouldn't happen. Jack was as good as dead. He trusted far too much.  
  
That night Pintel, an ugly man with yellow eyes and accompanied by his friend Ragetti had come up to Bill on the deck. They told him quietly that the mutiny was about to start and Bill followed, his stomach twisting in small knots and a bile rising in his throat.  
  
The next day they had stopped near an island and were about to have Jack drop off the plank. Bill held a pistol, and a single shot all meant for Jack. Bill knew Jack would never be able to use it to call for help or hunt so only one thing left to do was to shoot yourself and end your suffering. The island, which he had watched as they approached, was small; you could walk around the whole thing in ten minutes.  
  
'Isn't it lovely Jack?' Barbossa had asked mockingly as he had led Jack to the plank of the Pearl. Jack's eyes had been fixed on the island, a disgusted look on his face. 'I think you'll like it a lot, of course, you'll be there the rest of your life so you'll learn to like it.' The crew gawfed all except for Bill whom couldn't seem to open his mouth. This was one of his friends; he couldn't find it amusing even if he had wanted to. Jack's hands, which were knotted together with a coil of rope, twisted and turned a small bit of the rope, which had been dangling. He was nervous.  
  
'Barbossa, you don't want to do this mate.' Jack had said quietly. Everyone stopped laughing to listen. Jack's eyes had met Barbossa's as he continued. 'There is something waiting for you if you maroon me. Remember, great circles of hell...' Barbossa had laughed again and clapped Jack on the back hard, making him wince.  
  
'Ah, Jack.' He had laughed showing yellowed teeth. 'There is nothing you can do to scare me. What? I'm I to suffer the rest of my days because we left you to die. I'm not worried Jack.' He had pulled a large green apple from his pocket and placed it inside the red sash Jack wore around his waist. Making sure it was secure he said, 'As long as I have my apples.' The crew laughed again and Barbossa had led Jack to the end of the plank. 'Bootstrap, bring his pistol and shot...and a belt, so he can keep it with him at all times.' Bill had walked forward, holding the items delicately. Jack had watched him come and smiled evilly as Bill began tying the belt onto him.  
  
Quietly, so Barbossa wouldn't hear, Bill had said, 'Sorry Jack, but I have a family to support.' When he was done he looked into Jack's brown eyes and was met with understanding. They nodded to each other and then Jack had turned, walked on to the plank and jumped clear off and into the sea.  
  
The Black Pearl had waited long enough by shore to watch as Jack climbed onto the island before it began to sail away, under the control of Barbossa. Bill had stood at the rail watching as Jack stood on the beach, watching them go.  
  
'Jack's to daft to use his shot.' Barbossa had said in Bill's ear. 'He'll starve to death first.' As he walked away towards the middle deck, Bill had watched him go, Jack's voice ringing in his ears. 'Circles of hell.'  
  
A few days later they had found themselves at a rocky island. Mist seemed to cling to it and Bill had an uneasy feeling as he had stepped into a rowboat. There was something evil about the Isla de Muerta, something untold. He had wondered briefly if the curse was real before they entered a small water filled tunnel. After only a few minutes though, the tunnel had given way to a large water filled cavern. There were some heaps of gold but Barbossa had ignored these and went straight to a gold chest.  
  
Inside waited the treasure of Cortez himself, little gold coins with a skull caved into them. The men took greedily, no one noticing that as they did they grew cold. They spread the gold until finally there was almost none left. That's when it had happened, the moon, which had been hiding for a while now came out and they realized they were cursed.  
  
Bootstrap felt despair wash over him as he went deeper and deeper, it grew darker and darker and quiet. William!  
  
William Turner bolted upright, his mind spinning. A man, who looked like him, was being pulled under the waves, calling his name! His father. The dream had been so real; he had felt everything, every bit of despair, every chill...every regret. Will rubbed a hand over his sweaty brow and through his tangled brown hair. The dream had been so real but he knew it had probably come from his own fears and memories.  
  
Beside him, his wife Elizabeth lay fast asleep, her chest rising and falling slowly. He smiled. The only reason he had found out anything about his father and his father's life had been because of her. She had seen him in the water as a child and given out the call to rescue him as her ship had floated by the flaming wreckage of his. It had been her who had taken the cursed Aztec gold from around his neck in hopes of keeping it secret from everyone else about the past he might have had. It was her who had been kidnapped and used his name, the one captain Barbossa had been needing, for her own. It had been her he had fallen in love with and gone to rescue. It had been all that four years ago which had bought them together.  
  
Of course, he couldn't have done it without Jack Sparrow, correction, Captain Jack Sparrow. Jack was a weird man if not quite all there. He had known Barbossa, known where he would be and the curse. Will smiled, he would do anything necessary to get his ship back, even trade Will's life for it.  
  
Will got up slowly trying not wake the women next to him and crossed the room to stand in front of the large glass window. Their house over looked the ocean which, tonight was storming, large waves beating roughly and violently against the shore. The ships still docked in Port Royal's bay were rocking dangerously. Out there, somewhere, Jack was battling the storm. He winced as a large bolt of lightning streaked across the ebony sky and a roll of thunder crashed down over their heads.  
  
Elizabeth and Will had not seen Jack since he had fallen over the battlement after his ruined hanging four years ago. Will could still remember his unfinished sentence, "Friends! You will always remember this as the day that you..." Will smiled. They had heard stories though, many stories about Jack and his exploits over the years. Many, of course, where probably fabricated and told by the captain himself but some sounded true and to his nature.  
  
One such story had said that Jack and his crew had stopped a port town and gotten drunk. A large fight insued and many of the barmaids had helped an inebriated Jack escape a mad man by lifting their skirts and stopping the man long enough to have Jack escape. Another told of how Jack had outwitted fifteen armed soldiers thirsty for his hide. Many of the parts of the story went unanswered but it ended in the guards hanging by their undergarments from the side of their ship.  
  
One Will had to shake his head at and laugh was that Jack had dressed like a bar maid to escape guards. Will smiled, knowing how Jack liked to impersonate people he wouldn't be surprised if he had.  
  
Another peel of thunder rolled overhead, interrupting his thoughts and turning them back to his dream. He shuddered and wrapped his arms tightly around himself. He had felt the crushing waves, the cold and seen the dark. He suspected that the stories Jack had told him and the cursed sailors of the Pearl had told him, had been brought together to make the dream. His father though probably hadn't thought of him when he died, he was probably to worried about what was happening to himself at the moment.  
  
A cold thought suddenly struck Will. The curse, when they had lifted the curse! What if Bill had been alive, still under the waves and they had lifted the curse and...no. If Bill was still alive, it was ten years since they sent him down to the depths. He had a long time to get loose. Then again, if he were alive he probably would have come looking for his son...Will shook his head. The dream, like water in cupped hands, was starting to float away. It wasn't as clear as before. As he focused again on the rocky waves below, his wife came to his side and placed a hand gently on his shoulder. Will smiled and looked over at her. Her face was dark; he could hardly see what she looked like save for the flashes of lightning. Will had been taken in by her beauty since the day he had woken up aboard her ship. He had seen the fog and the rigging but that's not what stood out clear in his mind. It was an angel, no older then himself. She had been wearing a billowing blue dress, her face framed by brown ringlets and those eyes...he could get lost in those eyes.  
  
"Will, what's wrong?" She asked. Her voice made him shiver still. Mrs. William Turner, he loved the ring to it and loved to see her now, standing before him...forever. Will smiled widely and shook his head.  
  
"Nothing, I can't sleep is all." He turned his gaze back to the sea. Elizabeth suddenly wrapped her arms around him and he pulled her in close, both watching the sea.  
  
"Do you miss it?" She asked suddenly. He lay his cheek on the top of her head and took in the sweet smell. "The ocean, sailing. Do you miss it? Being a pirate." Will pulled away from her and, taking her chin gently in his hand, lifted her face up so he could look into her eyes.  
  
"Not if it meant leaving you." Elizabeth smiled. "And I am not a pirate anymore. I am the husband of the most beautiful women in the world."  
  
Elizabeth smiled and placed a hand on her stomach, the place where they're baby was growing. Will placed his hand over her's and looked out to the storm again. In eight months, he'd be a father and there would be no time for day dreaming about the ocean...no time wondering what happened to his own way ward father.  
  
Will could remember first stepping off the boat, Governor Swann's hand on his shoulder, young Elizabeth beside him. The town entranced them. Men worked on the dock, sweating in the hot sun. One man asked for his name and he gave it, a new resident of the town.  
  
'This is Mr. Brown, Will. He'll be teaching you the art of sword making. Mr. Brown, meet Will Turner.' Will had shaken hands with his master. Mr. Brown had taken him in when he had no one, father gone, mother dead. Mr. Swann was a good man, getting Will a job. Mr. Brown had looked him critically up and down before saying, 'I can see this boy has heart. I'll train him up Mr. Swann, don't you worry about a thing.'  
  
'I shall, a craftsman is always pleased to hear his work is appreciated.' Will had said to Governor Swann just hours before he had met Jack Sparrow and the Pearl had bared the cursed pirates to Port Royal. Governor Swann had not replied because at that moment, Elizabeth, his future wife had begun to walk down the stairs. He could still remember watching her, entranced by her beauty.  
  
'Will! It's so good to see you. I had a dream about you last night.' She had said as she approached. Will could remember being shocked. 'About me?'  
  
Governor Swann had tried to intervene but Elizabeth had plunged on. That's what he had always been attracted to, her strength. She had spoke of the day they had met, which he could never forget. 'How could I forget, Miss Swann?'  
  
'Will, how many times must I ask you to call me Elizabeth?' As always it was at least once more.  
  
Will stood at the window lost in his thoughts until her voice called him back to bed. Taking one more minute to admire the intensity of the storm, Will joined her. Under the covers she leaned into him, her back pressed firmly into his stomach. He wrapped his arms around her and listened to the rain beat down on the roof.  
  
"Will, I love you." She said quietly. Will kissed her hair.  
  
"I love you to, Elizabeth." With that, he slept  
  
Hey, I hope you like it. It will get better, I have a plot, and this was just the warm up. I swear it'll get better! Please review! My friend, who also writes ff is teasing me because she has so many more reviewers then me. I don't care though but...she makes me mad. Anyway, please review. 


	2. Revelations

Hey! Finally I'm back for a second chapter! I don't mean to complain but it is so hectic lately! I have a summer job I have to get going on, if only I can find the mayor of our town so I can get all my info on it. I'm maintenance person this year, cutting grass, etc. Oh man! People say it's a sucky job but it pays so...my friend came over the other day. She's dating another friend of mine and I didn't know! She never told me and I haven't talked to him since I moved away from Dalmeny a year ago so! Any way, enough of my tangled love life and on to the chapter. Oh, the plot is now forming.  
  
Chapter Two: Revelations  
  
The sea was calm and the battling rush of Tortuga met Jack's ears, filling his brain with its beautiful melody. He stood at the helm; dark eyes sweeping the crystal depths of the sea, so violent last night, calm and once again beautiful this morning. He tried not to let anyone see him shiver and involuntarily wrap his arms closer around himself.  
  
Anamaria stood by the plank shouting orders to the men, hands on her hips, black hair floating in the slight breeze. He watched it move almost entranced. They were docked in Tortuga's bay to get some rest, relaxation, entertainment and supplies before shipping out again to the unknown. As he stood there watching Anamaria, Gibbs came up behind him.  
  
"Cap'n, you cold?" Jack was startled that Gibbs had snuck up on him so easily but tried not to show it as he turned to face the man, shaking his head. "Alrighti, are ye ready ta go down?" Jack looked back towards Anamaria who was just ordering the last of the men off the ship and nodded. "Good, I need to get some time off this boat." Jack followed him down to the plank.  
  
The dock was to solid; it didn't rock like a ship so Jack had to compensate. Often this made him look drunk, which he usually was. Anamaria really wanted to reach out and take hold of him, help him walk but she couldn't bring herself to, Jack would be too ashamed. That was another problem with having Jack Sparrow as your captain, he always looked like he was about to fall down.  
  
The streets of Tortuga smelled like alcohol and pigs. Everywhere Anamaria looked there were bars, prostitutes and men, all trying to get some, kill some or drink some. She stuck close behind Jack, Gibbs behind her as they walked to the usual tavern. Even then, though, a man tried to make a grab at her.  
  
"Hello...luv." He said drunkenly, grabbing the front of her shirt and pulling her away from her guard. "Like what...yo see?" A gun suddenly appeared at the man's cheek and he let go of her. She stumbled back and was caught by Gibbs who pulled her away from the man. Jack had his gun out and looked like he was having the time of his life.  
  
"Show the lady some respect." He said evenly, "Savvy?" The man nodded and stumbled away while Jack returned his gun to his red sash around his waist. When it was safe he took Anamaria by the arm and led her to the bar.  
  
"Didn't need you to stick up for me." She snapped. Jack simply grinned and squeezed her arm a little harder, making her wince. She suddenly hated men.  
  
Inside was a dirt floor cluttered with tables, chairs and men shooting at each other, playing card games or passed out drunk. Jack led her to the bar and she tried to ignore the goat that was being fondled by a slobbering man with deep scars running down his face. A woman bumped into her, her dress half pulled down, a man tickling her. The women apologized and Anamaria watched them take their game to the stairway, no doubt on their way to find a vacant room.  
  
Suddenly, three women had pushed her out of the way and were hanging off of Jack. Anamaria thought they had just gone after the first attractive guy they had seen in a room full of uglies until she heard one women call him by name. The bartender watched with a grin on his face.  
  
"Hello Jack." Said the blond. She wore a red ripped dress and a heavy coat of makeup. She kissed him on the cheek and traced a line up his chest playing with his coat buttons. "Have you come here for me?"  
  
One of the other women, a brunet pushed her away roughly, her brown ringlets dancing about her tanned oval face. She was the prettiest of the three but Anamaria still didn't like her any better. "He came here for me, right sugar." Jack's gold tooth smile widened and his eyes traveled down from the women's face to her chest but he wasn't able to reply before the other brunet, a younger woman with disheveled hair leaned into him and planted a kiss on his lips.  
  
"I was with him last time, it's me he wants, right captain." Jack closed his eyes as if this was too much. Anamaria could tell he wanted to give in. Anamaria could see his senses battling; he wanted to go upstairs with them so bad.  
  
"Oh, girls." He whispered. "Do you really want to make me choose?" The girls giggled. Anamaria could feel her insides boiling. She was not going to stand for this.  
  
"You don't have to sugar." The blond purred, pushing the young brunet, "You can have me, free." The older brunet pushed her yelling, "Whore!"  
  
"Sorry ladies." She said loudly. She moved into the ring and, with Jack's eyes on her, pushed the girls away. "He's mine tonight. Shoo!" The women didn't move until Anamaria pulled out her gun and waved it threateningly. The women gave her evil looks and moved away one by one, the young brunet last. When they had cleared off, Jack put a hand on her shoulder and turned her roughly to face him.  
  
"Put your eyes back in cap'n." She said calmly wishing as she did that he would look at her the same way he did those women. She wished he would watch her, find good things about her to stare at, to get lost in. A little scared at her sudden desires she shoved these thoughts and feelings down deep inside her she said. "We have relaxation time, spend it drinkin' not with cheap hoes." She turned her attention to Gibbs who had been watching the whole scene near by. "What?" He shook his head and Anamaria moved out from under Jack's hand, which she'd felt the skin of it a small bit from under her ripped shoulder sleeve and found it was really cold, to look at the bar tender.  
  
Before she could order a drink though, the man had said, "Jack Sparrow?" Jack, who was still watching Anamaria, looked up at the bartender.  
  
"Captain Jack Sparrow." He replied. "It's Captain mate, savvy?" The man nodded then reached under the counter. Anamaria, thinking he was pulling out a weapon, reached for her gun and the man froze in mid action. Slowly, he pulled out an envelope. He definitely did not want to mess with this woman, not after the display she showed.  
  
"It was 'ivin' to me 'bout month back, some man comin' in 'ere, tol me if I saw ya ta 'ive it to ya." He handed the envelope to Jack who took it curiously, the many rings on his hands sparkling in the dim candlelight. "Couldn 'ell ya 'o 'e is, nor wha' 'e look li', kep 'is 'ood up."  
  
Jack flipped it over to look at the back and was met by a wax seal bearing a diamond shape emblem in the center. Jack's face seemed to cloud over for a minute but it cleared almost immediately. He smiled at the bartender then looked at Gibbs. "Could ye get me three of the usual, one for Ana and meet us in the spot?" Gibbs nodded and Jack turned and began to walk towards a table in the corner that was empty and secluded. With a meaningful glance at Gibbs who nodded, Anamaria followed.  
  
The women, Anamaria was glad to see, had moved on and made homes on the laps of some other men but still glared at her from their perches as she and Jack walked by. Jack though, didn't notice the women. He was to busy thinking about the envelope to pay any attention to them.  
  
What was in the envelope? Why would he send it anonymously? Should he tell Anamaria and Gibbs who sent it? What was he afraid of? Jack took his seat and set the envelope down on the table, emblem faced up. He knew that mark, that seal. He hadn't seen it for years. His suspicions were true then, it was all true.  
  
He looked up at Anamaria who was looking around at the bustling bar. She had grown up in Tortuga and he knew she didn't really like being back. They stopped here quite frequently, it was after all Jack's favorite town but she very rarely came into the town itself with him and Gibbs, she generally stayed with the Black Pearl watching over the loading of the supplies. Jack watched her. He usually watched her when she wasn't looking. He didn't think she noticed, that was what he wanted. Jack knew what Gibbs would say if love blossomed on the ship between the Captain and someone who was supposed to be bad luck. Anamaria had never brought bad luck though, the myth that having a woman on board was accursed was stupid and Jack had never held with such nonsense.  
  
Her eyes were traveling across the bar and Jack followed her gaze to see her watching Gabrielle, the women with brown curls. Jack liked Gabrielle; she could make a man feel special. Then there was young Marta; Jack thought she was a little amateur, her heart just wasn't in it. Mary, sister of Giselle sat on some slobbering idiot's lap. Her sister had slapped him to many times but he'd always come back for more.  
  
Anamaria looked across the table at him, her eyes catching the light of the dying candle and said, "Who sent the letter Jack?"  
  
"Captain, Ana." He corrected. Anamaria ignored him. He knew he had to keep the crew respecting him, it was the only way to keep himself off little islands. "And to answer your question luv, I don't know." Anamaria, he could tell, didn't believe him but he had come to the decision not to divulge that information just yet. He'd lost the Pearl last time he'd been that stupid.  
  
Gibbs approached their table a few seconds later, carefully stepping around kissing and fighting people carrying five tankards. He set three down in front of Jack, one in front of Anamaria and then sat down, clutching his own as if it was his first born son. Before he could speak, though, the goat on the bar made a noise and drew his attention. In the moments that his mind was on other things, Jack stole a glance at Anamaria whom, he was surprised, was watching him in return. Jack diverted his attention and was relieved a few minutes later when Gibbs broke the silence.  
  
"So, Cap'n. What be in that letter of yourn?" He took a large gulp from his tankard; eyes fixed on the wax seal. He didn't know what the diamond meant, that was a relief. Jack, hesitantly, took the envelope and began fumbling with the slit. After all the years of drinking, his fingers weren't what they used to be. Maybe, though, it wasn't the drinking...maybe it was because he was...Jack shook himself mentally, tried not to think about it and returned his thoughts to the task ahead.  
  
Anamaria noticed his hesitation and moved her face from his fingers to his eyes. They were clouded again, as though he knew what the envelope contained. 'Or who sent it!' That was it, Anamaria thought, Jack knew who sent it. Speculating on who it might be, she watched as the envelope opened and stared at the contents.  
  
There were three things inside. The first, which Jack pulled out quickly, was a ring with a sparrow indented in it, for wax sealing. The second was a small piece of paper with writing on it. Jack laid it out on the table and stared down at it. Anamaria had been taught how to read when she had turned twenty but found this hard to comprehend. It was in a foreign language, she didn't understand it at all. Neither did Gibbs who looked at her questioningly. They both shrugged and looked up at Jack who, Anamaria was surprised to see, was pouring over the letter as though he knew every word.  
  
"Jack?" Anamaria asked. Jack didn't answer her but continued to rove the paper. "Jack, I don't understand."  
  
"Its French, luv." He answered shortly. Anamaria stared at the paper trying to understand the words. Her mind was wheeling. She hadn't even been sure Jack could read English let alone any other language. That was just another mystery of the famous Jack Sparrow. No one knew anything about his past; no one knew anything but what he told them. As Anamaria thought this through, Jack set the paper down on the table, leaned back and closed his eyes as though he were suddenly ill.  
  
"Jack?" Gibbs asked. Jack made no sign of hearing the older man, he simply stayed silent. Anamaria took the third item; a smooth ancient looking folded parchment and opened it, revealing a map. There was Spanish writing at the top of the map, a small island in the middle with a crease down the center and what appeared to be five drawn alters all over the island. One was in a rocky cove to the north, two opposite each other across the island on the beaches, a third directly opposite the first in another cove in the south and one smack dab in the middle. Thinking about the ring Jack had pulled out earlier, Anamaria thought these mysterious alters make a kind of diamond shape if all connected. Anamaria leaned closer to the candle, trying to make out the words above each but she couldn't read them, they were in Spanish to.  
  
"What is this?" She asked Jack as Gibbs took the map. Jack finally opened his dark eyes and swallowed...was he crying? No, it had to be a trick of the light. Jack Sparrow didn't cry.  
  
"Cap'n," Gibbs said, handing the map to Jack and sipping deeply from his rum, "What does the letter say, we can't read it nor speak it." Jack took a large breath of air and Anamaria watched as his hand moved to his waist. "Well?"  
  
"It's from an old friend." Jack said simply. "A very old friend." Gibbs moved his hands, motioning Jack to continue but he didn't. "I have to go." He sprung up from the table and pushed his way through the bar, staggering more the usual. Gibbs and Anamaria sat there, surprised, the letter, map and ring still sitting on the table.  
  
"You left all yer rum!" Gibbs called. Jack didn't stop but exited the bar and disappeared from view. Gibbs made to get up but Anamaria stopped him.  
  
"I'll go, you stay here...drink those." She motioned to the four rum tankards and took off after her captain, ignoring Gibbs' protests and yells. There was definitely something wrong, Jack was not being himself.  
  
She pushed past whores and drunken blighters, eyes darting around for signs of trouble or her captain, heading to the Black Pearl's dock. She didn't get that far. Jack was off to the side of the trail down to the beach, his eyes closed, resting against a tree. Anamaria approached cautiously.  
  
"Jack, are you alright?" She asked. Jack opened his eyes and peered at her as though trying to get her into focus. "Are you hurt?" Jack shook his head and closed his eyes again, sliding down the trunk to sit at its base.  
  
"It's getting worse." He moaned. Anamaria sat down next to him and placed a hand on his shoulder, near his neck. There was no warmth, it wasn't a fever. All that was there was a numbing chill.  
  
"Jack? What's wrong?" Anamaria asked, placing her hand on his forehead. Oh my god, he's freezing cold!  
  
"I'm sick Ana...I think I'm dying."  
  
How was that? Did you like? Tune in tomorrow...day after?...maybe later, for more! Kay?! Kay! Anyway, to what really matters, my answer to those who reviewed. ShadowolfXIII: unlike my other one, this one you'll really read through, right? Huh? LOL. I love Ana, she radiates power that all women need and domination over men is something we all really need to learn in order to survive. Women rock! Oh, and Will is not going to die! He is way to hot for that! Happy.  
  
DragonHunter200: Always a pleasure, truly. So there, there is a plot now. Nauh! LOL, thanks for reviewing even if you hadn't seen any real plot, I couldn't think of anything Jack worthy for stories so I just made the old dress as a woman bit...works every time, really! This soon enough of an update? Probably not, seeing as it took me a week. Read above though and you'll know why. Plus I had a break through with the story and had to change it all around to work so...yeah! Please R and R! No, not rest and relax. Read and review, review, review! Sorry, hyper!  
  
Alteng: Nice to read you to. Thanks for the compliment on the writing style, it's been building up over time but I'm still not where I want to be. I've been writing since I was young but, I really want to be better. I knew Bill wasn't dead, he couldn't be, he's too cool, even if you don't know him. He'd have to be cool to hang with Jack...not literally (execution). I've never read paradise lost but I may...I'm a reading freak usually. Thanx for putting it in, it was an interesting bit. Ten years is a long time to be under water...and I have a reason for Bill not going after his son...you'll see. I just have to sort out the finer details.  
  
Meowface: Cute name, really. I hope your reading this and haven't moved on to another story because it took so long for me to update. Sorry, I really am. I hope your there because it'll get better, it really will.  
  
XxxCrAzYwAyZxxx: Hey, awesome name, really really cool! I love it! Hard to write out though all the time, eh? Like I said to Meowface, I hope you haven't left either due to waiting time and I really hope your reading this! Thanks for the review, really, it was cool. LOVE THE NAME MAN, AWESOME! 


	3. Falling

And...high ho silver! On to the next chapter!  
  
Ch. 3 Falling  
  
Will's hand tingled from the continuing hits of his hammer and he reached up, wiping sweat from his face. He needed a break...badly. Elizabeth was sitting outside at a small table and he sat down across from her, eyes travailing up, as they always did, to the sign above the door.  
  
"William Turner, Blacksmith." He read allowed smiling and returning his gaze to his wife. "I'll never get used to it." She smiled back but didn't look at him, her gaze still on the notebook placed in front of her, quill suspended over it with ink beside her. "You're still finding names?" He asked, laughing slightly. "Don't you think it's a bit premature?"  
  
Elizabeth looked up from her book, frowning. "Premature?" She asked delicately. "Will, there are only seven months until the baby is born, he or she needs a proper name!" Will sighed and shook his head, Elizabeth was always right – at least he let her think so – and there was no use in arguing. He peered down at the list.  
  
"Albert." That made him cringe and Elizabeth looked up as he shook his head, making a face. "No, Elizabeth, that's a stupid name." Elizabeth glared at him.  
  
"That was my grandfather's name." She said. Will gulped.  
  
"Ah...it's not a name for a...um...baby." He said. Elizabeth cocked an eyebrow.  
  
"My grandfather was a baby at one point." She said simply. Will laughed lightly making Elizabeth smile. "Well, if you don't like that what about my father's name? Weatherby." Will shook his head hard and Elizabeth smiled, wrinkling her nose. "No, I guess not."  
  
"I like Jonathan." Will said, that had been a man he'd known as a boy, who had helped his mother a lot as he'd grown up. Elizabeth pointed to the top of the list and Will read the name. Jonathan. "How about Lee, or...Adam?" Again Elizabeth pointed to the list. His eyes traveled down the names. James.  
  
"No!" He hissed. "Not James, anything but James!" Elizabeth looked at him, shocked.  
  
"James is a great name." She said. Will shook his head.  
  
"Norrington, I'll be ashamed forever and if Jack ever comes to visit...he won't because James is in the house!" Elizabeth frowned.  
  
"He didn't even come to the wedding Will, what makes you think you'll ever see him again? It's been four years." Will wasn't listening but scanning the list. William.  
  
"Not William either." He said. Elizabeth's brow furrowed. "My name, my father's name...I'm pretty sure my grandfather and great grandfather were Williams also." Elizabeth took her quill and scratched it out, just over the name John. "Not John."  
  
"Why?" She asked, looked down with a pouty face. "I like John, it's from the bible."  
  
"So is Ruth but I don't see it on your list." Will replied. Elizabeth smiled and wrote down Ruth with a small 'ah'. "Anyway, not John, that's Jack's real name I'm sure. Jack is short for John and I don't want our kid named after Jack...pirate, you know." Elizabeth smiled faintly but didn't cross off John or Ana, which was written beneath. "No."  
  
Elizabeth breathed out a deep sighed and looked up at William, annoyed. "What now Will?"  
  
"Ana?" Elizabeth nodded, a frown on her face. "Not, Ana...loud mouth, slaps, bossiness...any of these mean anything to you?" Elizabeth smiled slightly and nodded. "Well, Anamaria! I'm not having my kid named after her."  
  
"But she took initiative, she's strong...even if I hate her and besides, the baby wouldn't be named after that Ana. I have an aunt named Ana."  
  
"I don't care." Will replied. Elizabeth turned back to the book.  
  
"Any more you don't want?" She asked, not removing Ana. Will perused the list, making out the names which were upside down.  
  
"No." He said finally, knowing he wasn't going to win. Standing, he wiped a few trickles of sweat from his face and walked around the table, kissing his wife passionately. Elizabeth pulled away, giggling and glancing up and down the street.  
  
"Not in public." She said hastily, pushing back a strand of loose blond/brown hair and trying to hide the smile tugging at the corners of her mouth. With her quill she pointed to the door. "Go, work. I'll be at home, the party is in only a few days."  
  
"Party?" Will asked, stopping to look at her, confused. "What party?" Elizabeth rolled her eyes and sighed, scratching an itch on her head.  
  
"The one we're holding, in celebration of the baby." She said, as though this was something she'd already told him many times. Will blinked, remembering. Finally he smiled.  
  
"Oh yeah!" He said, catching on. "You told me about that...um..."  
  
"Three weeks ago." Elizabeth said with a small laugh. "Will Turner, if I didn't know any better, I'd say you were getting older and dumber by the minute." Will laughed and walked towards the shop. When he got to the door he stopped and turned to look at her.  
  
"If I didn't know any better, I'd say you were to." Elizabeth tore out a blank page from her book and threw it at him. The harmless paper hit the ground and bounced away, down the path, swept by the wind. Will shook a finger at her and went inside.  
  
He stoked the fire and stared into it for a long time, thinking about this new baby. Would he leave it just like his father had left him? Would he even be a good father? What would the baby be, a boy or a girl...what would it look like? He shivered slightly, not due to cold but nerves. He couldn't wait.  


  


Jack rolled over, shivering, his forehead beading with sweat, his breathing coming in deep gasps. Sharp pains pierced his body as though a hundred knives were cutting him. The blankets of his bed were tight, drawn around him in an effort to keep warm. His insides and outsides were freezing.  
  
Opening his eyes, Jack knew no matter how tired he was, he wouldn't be getting any sleep. Getting out of bed and dis-tangling himself from his blankets, Jack moved across the room to the table in the corner and moved aside bits of parchment and maps with a shaking hand until he found the letter he'd received the day before from the bartender.  
  
Pulling it out of the mess and laying it on top, Jack went over to the cupboard and grabbed a bottle of rum, taking it to the table and sitting down, drinking deeply. He had to read it again, make sure it was right.  
  
Translating took a few minutes but he had the time, Anamaria had told him to lye down as he'd been up all night with the Pearl and everyone thought he was asleep.  
  
"The tales started about fourteen years ago, as you know." He read aloud, muttering each word under his breath and trying to ignore the dizziness and nausea that swept his body. "In a small bar in Tortuga. The man was named, Gregory Matavich, and he was apparently from the ship Fated Partings, which sailed out of India years before with a large treasure. Well, I have sources which indicated that this is true, Jack. I know you'll find this but I can't say more, they're after me...you know the treasure and the stories behind it. I have reason to believe Ethan wants it." Jack stopped there and took another swig of rum, thinking.  
  
He knew what Ethan would use it for but he needed help...he knew where to get it. Looking down at the letter, Jack skipped a few lines and read the last part. "He'll have it, I know he will. I heard about the accident but, maybe he'll remember it. I left it to his mother in a song and hope she passed it on, as instructed. I hope so. All my best Jack. Sincerely, an old friend."  
  
Jack rummaged through the envelope and pulled out the ring. It had been his friend's, a sign of who had sent the stuff. The third, the map, was the map of the Fated Partings Island, he was sure. He knew the stories, knew the legends. All of those had different meanings, held different fates...with help, he'd be able to get the right one. Ethan must have the copy of the map with him, all he'd need was the right parting.  
  
A knock on the door startled him and he hastily shoved the items back into the envelope before throwing them into his deck drawer. When he was satisfied that they were well hidden, Jack went to the door and called through the wood, "What is it?"  
  
"It's a who and her name is Anamaria!" Ana's voice called back. Jack hesitated, hand on the handle and finally turned it, pulling the door wide. Anamaria stepped in and looked him up and down.  
  
She'd never seen him like this before. His face was slightly pale and there were dark patches beneath his eyes but it wasn't kohl or else it would be smudged from sleep. His eyes didn't sparkle like they usually did either; they were dull and lacked the intensity she'd always seen. His head was bare and bandana-less, black/brown hair tangled and loose, free of beads and she noticed a fine sheen of perspiration covering his forehead.  
  
"How do you feel?" She asked. Jack glanced around quickly and then pulled her inside, slamming the door behind her. Anamaria spun around and growled as Jack's hands clasped her upper arms in a death grip.  
  
"Sshh!" He hissed as she tried to pull away. "Don't let everyone know!" Anamaria glared.  
  
"Look, I didn' 'ave to come but I did! I didn' 'ave to stay, but I did! I didn' 'ave to keep my mouth shut about you being sick! I did, okay, so let me go!" Anamaria said in a raised voice. Jack shook her once and let her go, turning back to the table and grabbing his heavy coat from the chair pushed partly into it. It was warm in the cabin and he was wearing his coat? Maybe he had a fever now. Anamaria straightened her cloths angrily and went to leave before Jack stopped her.  
  
"I have to talk to you." He said, "Don't you leave." Ana stopped and turned back to him. He was leaning on the table, his back to her...he'd been so quiet she had almost not heard him.  
  
"You 'ave a funny was o' showin' it." She growled, "Wantin' to talk but attackin' me." Jack didn't turn but stayed exactly as he was, his voice still quiet.  
  
"I don't want everyone to know...alright? Not Gibbs, not Moises...no one." Anamaria left the door and walked over to Jack.  
  
Sitting down in a chair across from him, Anamaria leaned down and tried to look into his face which was covered by the curtain of brown hair. He glanced up at her before turning away and walking to the dresser in the corner. He opened a drawer and took out the contents of the envelope from the pub.  
  
"These are clues." He said, coming back to the table and sitting down, shoving the map and the letter across the table towards her. "They tell me where I have to go." He then proceeded to translate the letter to her. When he was done, he told her the whole story or, as much as he dared, and then stopped, watching her take it all in.  
  
"So, Ethan wants it, to bring his brother back?" She asked. Jack nodded and placed his head on the table top. "He'll be stornger then before?" Jack nodded. "You still didn't tell me who sent it."  
  
"All in good time, my dear lady...when you need to know." Anamaria felt a ripple of anger but helf it at bay, remembering his predicament. She'd have to learn to trust him some time. Suddenly it hit her...the other night, in the storm. Jack had been tryinng to kill himself, the way he wanted, on his terms. She mentally shook herself, not Captain Jack Sparrow.  
  
"So, set a course for here?" She asked, pointing at the map. Jack shook his head.  
  
"No." He said quietly. "Set a course for Port Royal. Quickly, there may not be much time."  


  


Short and not to sweet. Tell me, please, what you thought.  
  
Alteng: Thanks. Your computer had a break-down to. Gibbs is trust-worthy enough...well...as trust-worthy as Jack anyways and that's...not much in some ways. Oh well...it all good. Yeah, jack's crew should look at his last one before they plan mutiny, eh? Hehehehehehehehehehehehe....hehehehehehehehe. the map, ring and letter will all tie in the end, as I always like to do, tying things up...all the loose ends, its fun that way! Oh ladies...ladies...how do you make a dying man choose? Well, maybe there is no choice...take the blond! Kidding! I am my worst critic...scratch that, could have been written better. I am most definitely my worst critic (That could have been written better to)  
  
Meowface: Hi! What's up? Thanks and, all your pleases are paying off...except for the real soon part...this was kind of a long wait. Sorry! Truly!  
  
DragonHunter200: I like how you pointed out my lines, I like that you take the time to show me what you like, it reminds me who I'm also doing this for and tells me what standards I have to live up to. Kill him................hmmmmmm. NO, OF COURSE NOT...Well, wait... I was thinking about that thing. Okay, lets just put that he may or may not die. Satisfied? Reality suxs but...it's reality. You know? STUPID REALITY!  
  
Shaz1: Thank you so much, I must say I like it to...not to sound up on my self or anything, it's just...I know this will sound weird but...it's my baby. Here's more! Well, above was more, this is just an answer to your review, there will be more though. 


	4. Arrival

Hey! Back again! Here it is...chapter four. Sorry it took so long!  
  
Ch. 4 arrival  
  
Will opened his eyes slowly, taking in the light streaming through the velvet curtains on the high windows of his room. It was morning? Already? He moaned and rolled over, massaging his aching right shoulder and was about to say 'good morning' to his wife when he realized with a jolt that she wasn't there.  
Will sat up, looking bleary eyed around the room. Her presence was absent from there was well. Where could she be? Getting dressed and yawning every now and then, Will poured out a small bit of water from a jug on the dresser and wiped his face with his wet palm. The water felt cool and pleasant against the already warming room and he thought, only for a moment, about closing the drapes and going back to bed for another hour or so. That night, the guests would be arriving to join in the party for Elizabeth and the baby...which wasn't due for so long.  
He walked out of the room and down a long corridor to the secret stairway, located behind a tapestry, that led to the kitchens. Below he found a few women baking delicious smelling food, all greeting him with smiles and warm, "Hello Mr. Turner."  
The dining room was already set up for the guests, about twenty-five or so. The silver plates and golden drinking glasses shinning in the light from the windows, drapes open to let in all the light and make the room seem more spacious. Will glanced out the window on his way to the entrance hall and caught a glimpse of the sun-bathed harbor, so brilliant today.  
Elizabeth was in the entrance hall, flitting around and telling who to hang up what. Will relized almost immediately they were short staffed for hanging decorations and decided it hadn't been wise to come down here now, should have waited another few hours. Casually, so as not to draw attention to himself, Will truned and tried to escape back into the dinning room. He almost made it before he heard Elizbeth's voice.  
"Willaim Turner, where do you think your going?" Will cringed and turned to see his wife standing at the foot of the winding marble staircase, hands on her hips, watching him with raised eyebrows. Will smiled cheerfully and walked over to her, past servants and decorators, placing a hand around her waist and kissing her softly on the lips. She pulled away. "Well?"  
"I saw you were bussy so I thought I'd stay out of your way." He lied. Elizabeth looked right through him.  
"Likely story." She said. "You were trying to sneak off and not do any work. This party is tonight and I'm ripping my hair out trying to get it all ready to go." Will smiled sympathetically. He really would have rather not had a party at all, waited until after the baby was born and have a formal dinner with close friends and family...Elizabeth's family as he didn't have any of his own.  
"You'll get it done." He said, leading her away from the banister as a man came down the stairs with a ladder. He didn't want Elizabeth to be knocked in the head by it, seeing as she was slightly preoccupied. "Now, why don't you take a break and..."  
"Break! Break!" Elizabeth cried. "I forgot to tell you, we'll need a new tea set, the lavender one broke, someone dropped it." Will tried to look unhappy but was secretly smiling. He hated that damn thing.  
"Oh, okay." He said quietly as she bustled away from him and into the dinning room. Thinking now he could make off, back to the entrance hall and out, down to the town, Will turned.  
"Will! I need your help in here!" Elizabeth called. Will cursed under his breath and crossed his arms over his chest. Women were such hassles. Hiking up a smile, Will followed his wife to see what she wanted.  
  
There was knocking. Jack could hear it dimly. Someone was knocking on his cabin's door. "What do you want?" He yelled as loudly as his numb spinning brain would allow. This time, he was drunk for good and it felt so wonderful. A woman's voice came floating to him...women were such hassles.  
"It's me, Ana..."  
"Ana? Who else could it be? There is no other woman on board." Jack moaned. Anamaria seemed to hear him because she opened to door sending a rum bottle rolling away across the floor to the bed where it the post with a soft 'chink'.  
"Jack?" She said quietly, coming closer into the room as the red glow of the setting sun filtered in through the window. "Are you okay." Jack couldn't answer; his brain was to dumb at the moment. All he felt like doing was sleeping. Maybe, finally, he'd die on his own terms. Drinking himself to death had seemed like a good idea yesterday, when he had started.  
"Hmm." Jack muttered in reply. Anamaria came in and shut the door behind her softly, kicking away broken and empty bottles in her attempt to reach the bed. "Go away."  
"No." She replied forcefully. "We're in Port Royal. You told me to come get you when we arrived." Jack couldn't remember ever giving that order but played along with it all the same.  
"Changed me mind." He mutter into the pillow, drawing the mound of heavy thick blankets higher over himself and curling up into a tighter ball. Anamaria sighed and sat on the edge of the bed, watching him, he could dimly feel her eyes on him. "Look luv, if your going to sit there an' watch me till I get up...you'll be waiting there a while, savvy?" Anamaria sighed again.  
"You are the most stubborn, daft, drunken sot I have ever met, you know that Jack?" Jack cracked an eye and looked over at her. She was fuzzy and oddly wavering.  
"Captain, luv. It's captain Sparrow, savvy?" Anamaria growled.  
"Yer not much of a captain now, are ye? Most of the crew have gone, snuck into town for supplies and such. Gibbs is waitin' to take us to the Turner's house so as you can speak to the whelp an' then we can leave on what ever venture you fancy. Right now, though, we only have tonight before the navy is sure to find us so I be saying we be movin'."  
Jack's head hurt to much to hear the knock on the cabin door. "What?" Anamaria shreaked. Gibbs's voice filtered into the room.  
"The sun's almost gone, perfect for sneakin' I be thinkin'. Are you ready to go?" There was a pause. "Is Jack alrigt?"  
"He's fine, just a little drunk. We'll be out in a minute." Gibbs made a weird noise and closed the door. Anamaria and Jack sat in silence for a moment before Jack's curiosity got the better of him.  
"Where are we...harbour?" Anamaria snorted.  
"Harbour? We'd be shot for sure, nah, we be in a cove on the farther side. Less likely to be spotted that way. Now come on you daft fool." She tugged the mound of blankets off him and caounted five or six. He was wearing his blueish grey long coat and his usual assortment of garments underneath. Anamaria could have sworn, with that many blankets, he would have been drippen an ocean of sweat. Lenaing down, she placed the back of her hand to his forehead. Still cold. "Come on! Gibbs, help!"  
Gibbs was back. He and Anamaria grabbed Jack beneath the arms and hauled him up. Jack pushed them away roughly. "I'm okay." He slurred, taking a step forward and tripping over the trow rug in his drunken haste. "Just need some...fresh air." They watched, astonished as Jack made his way tipsily to the door, grabbed the handle and slid down the wood until he was on his front at the bottom, snoring.  
"Really drunk." Gibbs said. Anamaria followed him over to their captain and turned him over. "Almost as though he be tryin' to kill himself, eh?" He stated. Anamaria ignored this comment, knowing he was probably right and together they lifted Jack to his feet, draped his arms around their shoulders and made their slow progress from the ship and down a bunch of hills to the town of Port Royal.  
The place was just as Gibbs and Anamaria could remember it, being here last a few years ago to pull Jack from the water after his botched hanging. It hadn't changed at all...the place was still crawling with red coated guards.  
After what felt like hours, with the sun down properly now, they made it to the richest part of the town and Anamaria left her hiding place alone to ask a passing man if he knew where the Turner's home was. The man had looked her up and down critically as her dress was rather shabby, it being the best she could find on short notice, and directed her to a beautiful, but rather smaller then the ones around it, mansion. She'd thanked the man and left, feeling his eyes on her the whole way. Jack was still in a semi- conscious-half drunk stupor when she came back.  
"That man said it's that one." She said, pointing to the manor nearby. There was an assortment of carrages and people making their way up the drive. "It looks like they got something going on tonight, don't it?" She whispered. Gibbs nooded, the lights from the windows catching in his eyes as he stared.  
"Makes a lot for a blacksmith." He said. Jack's drunken voice answered before Anamaria could.  
"Stupid whelp, make that money." He laughed lightly and they looked around fearfully, for any passing people who might have heard. They were alone though. "It'll be 'Lizbeth makin' all the money, you mark me." Anamaria placed her hand over his mouth until her closed his eyes again and they set off, through the darkness and allies to the back streets and the small kitchen door.  
"I'll go first." Gibbs said, leaving Anamaria and Jack in the shadows and approaching the house's kitchen door. He knocked three times and waited until a squat, round, red faced woman appeared, wearing shabby cloths and drying her hands on her apron.  
"Yes?" She asked, looking Gibbs up and down critically. Gibbs put on his best smile and rubbed his hands on his shirt with out thinking. This woman was actually quite attractive.  
"I'm looking for the master of the house...Mr. Turner? It's just, it's an imergancy," The woman made a weird sound and closed the door. Gibbs stood there for a moment, watching the place where she had dissapeared and then raised his hand to knock again when the door opened and William Turner's face appeared.  
"Mr. Gibbs?" He said. Gibbs smiled. The boy looked no different from the last time he'd seen him, prehapps slightly older but... "Is there something wrong? Come in..." Will stood aside and motioned for Gibbs to enter but he shook his head.  
"It's Jack." Will's brow furrowed.  
"Jack?" He asked. "Why, what's wrong with Jack?" Gibbs could hear the sounds of talking guests in the house and was unsure what Jack might do. This was the most drunk he'd ever seen him.  
"Well...with yer guests..." Will turned to look at the closed kitchen door behind him and he frowned. "Ye may want to follow me, lad."  
Gibbs led Will down the steps and to the dark space between the trees that Anamaria and Jack waited in. Will smiled slightly when he saw Jack but frowned again almost immediately and knelt down beside him.  
"Is he alroght? What happened?" Gibbs sat down besode the young blacksmith as Will shook Jack slightly.  
"Well, he..."  
"Quit shakin' me whelp!" Jack slurred, opening his eyes. "I'm fine...just alil..."  
"Are you drunk?" Will asked, knowing the answer already. When was Captain Jack Sparrow ever sober?  
"Wait..." Jack held up and hand, closed his eyes again and took a deep breath. "Okay...to your question, yes. Very." Will nodded.  
"How many bottles?" He asked. Jac looked at him in mock hurt.  
"Jump right to the bottles and no 'high, how ye doing mate? Good to see ye.'" Will smiled.  
"What? No, 'Hello whelp, sorry to burst in on you like this, drunk as I am.'" Will said, giving an uncanny resemblance to the pirate captain, "But you know, I've been makin' me fortune and sorry didn't come to the weddin' but, ye know how pirate life be an' all. By the way, happy weddin'?" Jack smiled.  
"I'm better." He said. Will laughed lightly and turned his gaze to the house then to Gibbs and Anamaria.  
"Do you want to bring him in? We can sneak him through the kitchens and up the hidden staircase to the floor above, put him in the guest bedroom." Anamaria and Gibbs nodded, Anamaria trading places with Will. Will and Gibbs pulled Jack to his feet and they set off through the dark, back towards the house and the safety it would provide.  
The kitchen was really nice; the candle filled chandelier swinging wildly in the cool draft they let in from the open door. The women around the kitchen watched the master of the house and these assortment of people make their way to the hidden staircase.  
"Stop." Will whispered to Gibbs. The man did as he was told and Will turned to the women. "Please, you have to keep their being here a secret. There is a very dangerous man after them and we could all be dead if it gets out, okay?" The women nodded, looking frightened and Anamaria had to hide her grin at this fib Will Turner, of all people, was telling.  
"Sir, if we told the Commodore, he could protect us." Said a young woman in the corner. The others nodded.  
"No, it's for his safety as well." Will replied. "I want him to stay safe...it's a matter of life and death ladies, please. No one says a word."  
"William, are you in there?" It was Governor Swann's voice. Everyone turned to the kitchen door and the footsteps getting louder.  
"Quick, it's my father-in-law!" Will hissed, letting go of Jack and watching as Anamaria and Gibbs made their way clumsily up the hidden staircase. As the tappistry it was hidden behind fell back into place, Will turned and saw his father in law standing in the doorway watching him.  
"What are you doing in here?" He asked, smiling. Will returned the smile and glanced at the staircase behind him, the one Swann didn't know about, as a strangled yell floated down to him and there was an odd crash. "What was that?"  
"The cat." Will answered simply. The governer blinked at him and Will walked forward, grabbing the man's arm and leading him back out to the party. "How do you like it, sir?" He asked. "Elizabeth organized the whole thing."  
"Bet she roped you into some of the decorating." He said. Will smiled and laughed, nodding. Suddenly Swann looked serious. "Look after this child just as you've looked after my daughter." Will raised an eyebrow.  
"Why wouldn't I?" He asked. Swann shrugged.  
"I'm just worried. Elizabeth's mother died in childbirth with her, I don't want the same to happen here." Will placed a hand on the man's shoulder.  
"I promise you, Elizabeth will be fine. Now, if you will please excuse me, I have buisiness elsewhere, enjoy the rest of the night and I will see you at the feast." Swann nodded and walked off, wending his way through the crowd to the Commodore. Will watched him go and, when he was sure the man was gone, made his way back towards the kitchen.  
The staircase was dark and there was no noise as Will started up it. At the top he saw someone had hit the table and the vase that had been on it was sitting on the floor beside it, not a scratch of crack on it. Someone had caught it as it had fell.  
Jack was lying in the guest bed, his eyes shut tight. Anamaria and Gibbs were sitting beside him, sweat pouring down their faces from their long walk and heavy burden. "He be a lot heavier then he looks." Anamaria muttered. Will came to the bed and finally got a good look at his friend. He was wearing a mountain of cloths.  
"Well, it's probably due to all the fabric on his body." Will said. "I'd say he's wearing half his body weight." Will sat down on the edge of the bed to look at his friend, running a hand down Jack's face to feel for a temperature. There was none, he was just really bloody cold. "That's odd." His hand moved down Jack's neck and the pirate, who everyone thought was a sleep, made a grab at it but missed.  
"Touch me like that an' I'll kill ye, savvy?" Jack growled. Will pulled away and smiled slightly at Anamaria and Gibbs.  
"Savvy Jack. Now, tell me. What's going on?" Jack opened his eyes and peered at Anamaria and Gibbs.  
"They have to go first." Jack said. Anamaria and Gibbs made noises of protest but Will was the one to silence them.  
"Go to the kitchens, you'll find food and drink there. Take what you want, tell the servants it was me who sent you. Then, when you've had your fill, come back up here with hot tea...for Jack." Jack made a face but didn't say a word till the two others left. When they were gone, Will closed the door and locked it, listening to them arguing all the way down the stairs. When he was sure they were gone, he came back and sat in a chair at Jack's bedside.  
"Now, what's going on?" Will asked. Jack sighed.  
"There's this guy named Ethan. He wants what I wants." Jack said. Will nodded but Jack had his eyes closed.  
"Well?" Will said. Jack stayed silent. "What does Ethan want?"  
"He wants to revive his brother." Jack's voice was growing fainter, he was falling asleep. Will had to know.  
"Who's his brother?" He asked. Barely above a whisper, Will heard the words.  
"Barbossa."  
  
Well? What did you think? I liked it! Now you find out who Ethan is trying to bring back! Hehehehehe  
  
DragonHunter200: Thanks, all the time eh? Cool. I like knowing what you like. Sorry your not satisfied but...you know me, I don't want to give to much away and I really wanted to try and build a plot letting you only enough to get you roped in and then...reel em! Wahoo! Do you think there will be a potc two? I hope so...off topic real bad, eh?  
  
ShadowolfXIII: There, happy Taylor? Hope the teacher doesn't make us shut up again. 

Alteng: All the fun is in speculation! It's fun and…sometimes your right. Guess you know now though, hey? No wonder Jack needs help on this one. Barbossa back …and stronger then before…NONONONONO!

Scarlett Burns: Sweet name. Hey, how's it goin'? Every says poor guy but...I think it'll give him character. He's Jack Sparrow...wait, CAPTAIN JACK SPARROW, SAVVY? He'll pull something from his...cute behind. I loved the potato chip thing. I havn't seen secret window but I really want to! 


	5. The Fated Parting revealed

Hey! Back for more, even though it doesn't look like anyone's reading it. Oh well, it's for myself to. If anyone is reading this please, review. Then I'll know. Anyway...(depressed now for lack of reviews) bye.  
  
Chapter five: The Fated Parting revealed  
  
Will went back to the party and made a beeline straight for Elizabeth who was talking with Commodore Norrington. "Yes, thank you. Its actually been surprisingly..." Elizabeth trailed off as Will grabbed her arm and smiled quickly at the Commodore. "Will? What's..." Before she could say a word, however, Will had pulled her away, the Commodore watching them disappear with an expression that was hard to read on his face. When they were near the kitchen, Elizabeth wrenched her arm from Will's grasp. "That was so rude! What's gotten into you?" "Jack." Will said. Elizabeth raised an eyebrow. "Jack's here. He's upstairs in the guest room." Elizabeth gasped and made to turn away, in the direction of the entrance hall stairs but Will grabbed her. "No, don't draw attention to yourself." He hissed. "Why is he here, of all times?" She hissed back. Molly Madison and her daughter passed. They were watching Will and Elizabeth with interest and smiled slightly when they noticed Will saw them, turning their heads and walking away. "There's something wrong with him. I've never seen him this drunk befo..." "Drunk?" Elizabeth almost cried. "Oh, that's just great. He's here at my party all...out of his tree and you expect me not to be worried about this!" Will tried to say something but Elizabeth stopped him. "Is he alone?" "No." Will answered. "Gibbs and Anamaria are in the kitchen." Elizabeth sighed angrily and looked over the crowd at the Commodore who was talking with another man, someone Elizabeth didn't know very well. "Where is Jack now?" Elizabeth asked. "Your keeping an eye on him, I suppose?" "Yes, he's out of it at the moment. He said something about Barbossa though, about Barbossa's..." But, at that moment Will was cut off by the chinking of a glass and the whole room going silent. The Commodore stood on the small platform to the front door, his glass raised. He cleared his throat and looked over at Will and Elizabeth. "I would like to make a toast." He said. "To Will, Elizabeth and the baby who will be here in...how many months?" Will muttered something under his breath but Elizabeth answered. "It'll be seven months soon." She said. Everyone around clapped and the Commodore continued.  
  
Jack woke slowly, wondering where he was and why he felt so bloody miserable. The bed beneath him didn't rock, so he wasn't on a ship. He stretched out his arm and could feel no end to the bed, no side to grab. It was to comfortable...to big...to alone to be a bed of Tortuga and, besides, he couldn't hear gun shots or fighting. Someone had removed his coat. He felt cold and small with out it and pulled his blankets tighter around him, opining his eyes to take in the room around him. There was some scattered talking downstairs but other then that, silence. The single candle in the holder by the bed on the bedside table cast the room in a dim glow. Gibbs sat at the table in the corner of the room, his head resting on it's top, an empty plate beside him. Jack watched him for a moment and then turned his eyes to Anamaria. She lay sprawled on a couch near the table, lying on her stomach with her arm hanging over the edge and her mouth open wide. He couldn't tell who out of the two was snoring louder. Deciding he'd gone way past his beauty sleep, Jack slipped out of bed, pulled his coat back on and huddled it closer around himself as a chill ran involuntarily up his body and a head ache pounded behind his eyes. How much had he drank? The hall was dark. He moved his gaze to the left and found a balcony over looking what appeared to be a foyer or something. Not wanting to go that way because the voices sounded to be around there, Jack moved right, towards a tapestry of a man and woman sitting on a hill having a picnic. He grinned and ran a hand down the beautiful work. Elizabeth had bad taste. It was to...enlightening...romantic. The tapestry moved as he pushed on it. Jack drew it aside and found a small bit of dark hall and then a staircase leading down to another room. It was quiet down there, a small sliver of light floating on the wall. Making up his mind, Jack climbed down these stairs, making sure he didn't knock over the vase on the table and came out in a kitchen where three women sat, talking gently. They all looked up, shocked, when they saw him. "Mr....ah?" The oldest one came forward and offered him a chair. "Master Turner never told us your name." She said. Jack smiled slightly and nodded, sitting in the offered chair. "Would you like something to drink...tea...water..." "Rum?" Jack asked. The youngest, a woman with short black hair giggled and watched him from the corner of her eye as she pulled down a glass. "Actually," The older one said, beginning to boil some water. "Master Turner said you weren't allowed to have rum." Jack was going to kill that whelp! "Tea, you look cold." Jack didn't answer. He was freezing but, there was nothing he was going to let on about. The women bustled around and, about twenty minutes later, the third woman, a beautiful girl with blond pigtails, set the tea in front of him. "What be yer name anyway, sir?" She asked. Jack noticed they probably weren't allowed at the hanging, only slightly higher class then they were allowed to watch a man 'legally' murdered. He'd often wondered about that. The bible said 'thou shalt not kill' but, what of the hangman? He was killing. Shouldn't he be hung for murder but then...who would kill him? "Cotton." Jack answered, saying the first name that came to him. Cotton wouldn't tattle on him anyway. "My name is Cotton." "And what do you do, Mr. Cotton?" The black haired woman inquired. Jack smiled and thought about it for a moment. "I sell carriages. All sorts. Black ones with silver...black ones with gold..."  
  
Anamaria opened her eyes slowly. It had been that dream again, the one that had haunted her thoughts and nightmares for years...ten years to be exact. Nicholas, dying in her arms, blood pouring from his mouth. She hadn't told anyone one on the Pearl about him. Most of the men now considered her a 'male' member of the crew. If the knew she'd been married... She'd stopped praying after he had died, stopped believing in god entirely. How could a being so powerful and loving had let Nicholas die? Jack had told her he was dying... She sat up and looked around the room. Gibbs hadn't moved. They'd been talking before he'd slumped over, asleep. Jack. She looked over at Jack and was startled to see he was missing. "Jack?" She whispered, getting off the couch and moving to the bed. He hadn't stopped shivering so she'd placed more blankets over him. The mound was there but Jack was missing. "Damn." She opened the door carefully and moved to the tapestry, hoping Jack, even though he was very drunk, would have the good sense to go that way and not into the eyes of the public below. There was laughing coming from the kitchen. "And, what happened next?" A female voice. Anamaria noted that the woman, who ever she was, seemed to be flirting. Jack's voice answered. "Well, he ran across the court yard, pants around his ankles and his..." Jack stopped and looked over at Anamaria. His smile widened. "I see your awake luv." He said. Anamaria frowned. "Don't call me luv, cap'n." She answered, taking a seat opposite him at the table where he and the women sat. Anamaria noticed an abandoned cup of tea, the glass still full but no longer steaming, and a few empty water glasses. "What are you talkin' about?" "Gibbs." Jack answered. "When he got drunk that one time, in Tortuga...you weren't there, were you?" Anamaria shook her head. "Okay, so he ran off, pants around his ankles and his..." Anamaria slipped off, her mind back on her late husband. She hadn't thought of him in so long, why now? Was it because Jack was dying to and she needed to hold on to some part of him... Jack wasn't dying though. Anamaria shook her head to clear it. No one noticed. He couldn't die, he always though he was dying when he stubbed his toe. What, a small cold and...but even as she watched him, though he looked happy and...hung over, Anamaria could see a slight tremor in his body, hear a slight shake in his voice and his shade was just a shade paler. If he weren't so tanned she'd know for certain. The women laughed louder and Anamaria realized she had missed something. Jack was smiling at her and she smiled back. What had he said? It really didn't matter because at that moment Will and Elizabeth entered the kitchen, to busy arguing to notice Jack and Anamaria, along with the kitchen maids, sitting at the table laughing. "I don't care Will." Elizabeth almost shouted. She was obviously having trouble keeping her voice down. "He's drunk! What if he comes out here? What if the Commodore catches him? He didn't even come to the wedding Will! He's only using you for something!" "You should feel his skin, Elizabeth, it's as cold as ice! There is something wrong with him! I've never seen him this drunk!" "I have, on the island! He passed out while making moves on me! He's depressed! That's why he drinks!" Jack cleared his throat and they looked around at Jack and the others, surprised. Elizabeth's face grew beat red and she looked away from him. Will took in a deep breath and turned to his wife. "Actually," Jack said. "I drink not only when I'm depressed but happy, sad, mad, sick, well, in love...in hate..." "Okay, I get the picture." Elizabeth snapped. She took a deep breath and looked at Jack finally, embarrassment clear on her face. She shoved away a stray hair impatiently. "I'm sorry Jack, I didn't see you there." "Obviously." Jack said. He looked between Elizabeth and Will for a moment, then said, "I am here for a reason that will benefit not only myself...but Will and his family as well." Elizabeth raised an eyebrow. "You mean me?" She asked. Jack nodded and shook his head at the same time. "You aren't the only family our dear young William has, you realize." Jack said. Elizabeth placed her hands on her hips and looked at him grimly. Jack decided he shouldn't push her, she seemed rather angry at the moment. Hormones...maybe she was pregnant? Nah... "Will does have other family. Now, if these dear ladies will leave..." The women who were sitting around the table looked unhappy at this and turned to Will who nodded. "I'll tell you the rest tomorrow." Jack said simply. The women smiled and nodded, leaving through a door to the right, to another part of the house. When they were gone, Will peered out the kitchen door to the party, sighed and then led Elizabeth to the table. Jack looked at Anamaria. "You to." "I will not." She said defiantly. Jack waved a hand impatiently. "Go, now Ana." He growled. "No! I am as much in this as you are! I'm your first mate!" Everyone in the room knew she wasn't going to go. Jack, however, seemed to think he could make her. "No." He said simply. "Gibbs is me first mate." Anamaria sat back and crossed her legs, tapping her foot on the hard ground. "I don't care. I'm the first one you told, I deserve to be here." Jack closed his eyes and sat back, his jaw clenched. Anamaria thought he was just mad but then she saw his hand move to his stomach like it had in the bar so many days ago. "Jack? Are you alright." Now Will and Elizabeth moved forward to, both looking worried. "I'm fine luv." He said. "Don't call me that." Anamaria growled. Jack allowed himself to smile slightly and then opened his eyes as Will and Elizabeth sat down, Will closest to Anamaria. He leaned towards the female pirate and whispered to her while Elizabeth tried to take Jack's temperature unsuccessfully. "What's really wrong with him?" Will asked. Anamaria was watching Jack still as she leaned towards the young blacksmith. "He's...he thinks he's dying." She said. She didn't want to say that Jack might be right so she continued with a quite, "But, you know Jack." "No, I don't. Only stories." Will said. "I only knew him for what? Two or so days?" Anamaria nodded. That was true. "Do you think he's dying?" Anamaria didn't answer. She trusted Jack but he was a drama king, really. "Talking bout me?" Jack asked. Will shook his head and leaned on the table, his hands clasped as the sounds of the party filtered through the door. "What bout the party your having in the celebration of...what exactly?" "We're having a...baby." Will said. Elizabeth was smiling. Jack looked at him grimly. "I'm sorry, I didn't know. If I had known it was a party bout life before it was ruined, I would have waited. Didn't know you were depressed." Will almost laughed aloud at the look on Elizabeth's face. Instead of replying to that, however, she inquired into why Jack was here. "Well, I need Will's help, not yours." Jack said. "Why do you need my help Jack?" Will asked. "What does Barbossa's brother...Ethan, was it?" Jack nodded. "He's wantin' what I want...only for something else." Jack said, leaning back in his chair with his feet on the table. "If he revives Barbossa, he'll be back stronger then he was before, when he was cursed." Will raised an eyebrow. "Why do you need me then?" Will asked. Jack sighed and looked to the stairs as though he really wanted to go to bed. "Did your father ever tell you a story...a tale...anything to do with the ship, Fated Parting?" Will sat up straight and blinked, thinking. His mother had told him a bedtime story, every night before she had died. It was always the same and, now that he thought about it, it was strange the way she had almost drilled it into his brain. It had been years since he had thought about it though. "Yes...my mother though." Jack nodded thoughtfully and took his feet off the table. "Can you remember it?" "Yes." Will said. "Well, parts of it." Jack made a slight 'ah' sound so Will continued. "There was something about the ship, Fated Partings, under the captaincy of Raoul Markling." Jack nodded. "They sailed all around the globe...there was something about India. An Indian princess." "Morliana." Jack muttered. "That would be it." Will said. "She was in trouble with someone...some evil man..." "Perdolin." Jack supplied. Will nodded. "He was after these bottles Morliana had, they contained very powerful magic or something. I think, though the story says it's magic, it could be medicine. Anyway, there were four bottles. I remember they were in special glass jars and there were women on these jars. In the story, the women could talk and they would put a curse on the drinker if they picked wrong. Three were poison, one was special." He stopped here and looked at the kitchen door for a moment before continuing. "They were said to contain the spirits of female gods or warriors, something like that. With some it was just the potion that was cursed...for others you merely had to touch the bottle." Will looked at Jack, hoping he'd say something but the man was deep in thought. "Does 'brining back the lost' mean anything to you?" Jack asked. Will smiled slightly. "That was the main bottle, the non poison. What ever you wanted at that time, it would come. Say, your friend was dying." He looked over at Jack for some sort of reaction but he hid it well. "You could save him." "Or if he was dead, you could bring him back?" Will nodded. "It only works once, at least that's what the story said. It can bring back anyone and anything." He stopped. "More powerful then before." He suddenly understood. "Jack, how did you know about Ethan and Barbossa." Jack pulled out three items from his jacket pocket and placed them on the table. The first was a map, folded and yellow spotted. Beside that was a crumpled letter and, last was a ring with a sparrow on it, perfect for wax seal closing. "This is a letter from a very old friend." Jack said. "I got it in Tortuga. He was the only man I knew of who had some idea where the island was." Will took the letter and examined it. It was in a different language. "He's the only man who can save my life." Will looked at him. What did he mean? "What? Jack, don't you think your going a little over board?" "Will, I've been dying since the curse of Cortés. That's part of the curse, it affects different people in different ways. The crew of Barbossa, some still unhappily alive, will know what I'm saying. I want the gold Will. I want to be immortal again. I need to be immortal again. I'm dying and this is the only way other then living at Ilsa de Muerta. Savvy? Your father, Bill Turner. He's the only man who can help me now." "My father?" Will asked. Jack smiled lopsidedly. "He's the only one who can find the Fated Partings treasure...because of him though," Jack tapped the items on the table. "I can now to."  
  
Done...  
  
DragonHunter200: Hey again! At least I have you...I hope. Women are hassles...I'd know, I am one. I think...yup! I had to print off your review and read it on the way to a French play in the city. It made me laugh with your little comments. Off topic is semi-me as well. I luv off topic, specially when it comes to potc. I think J.D is thinking about potc 3, from what I hear but, it's not for sure about that. 


	6. The stowaway

Hey, here again! Well, this chapter is kinda a gateway into the story and really doesn't have much in the way of revealing story lines but...it does have a little Jack/Ana thing going on so...read and review please!  
  
Chapter six-stowaway  
  
Anamaria woke early the next morning and stretched, her back and legs aching from sleeping on the hard couch all night. The sun was streaming in through a crack in the beautiful curtains of the guest bedroom and falling across the end of the lump in the bed under the heavy blankets...Jack. Anamaria sat up slowly, testing her body for soreness or stiffness and finding it here, there and everywhere.   
Her eyes moved to Jack, over the room, and came to rest on Gibbs who was still in the same position she'd left him in the night before. She thought she was stiff, wait until he got up. "Jack." Anamaria whispered softly, shaking his shoulder. Jack didn't move so Anamaria sat beside him on the mattress and smoothed away a piece of hair falling in his face.   
His breathing was so slow...so mournfully peaceful. She didn't want to feel like this, didn't want to feel for him of all people. He was so arrogant, reckless, pig-headed, daft...brilliant, charming, witty, handsome...   
Anamaria shook herself mentally and pulled her hand away, springing up from the bed as if it were electrified and screaming at the top of her voice, "Jack Sparrow, it is time to get up!" There was a loud yell and a crash from behind her as Gibbs fell off his chair and almost knocked the table over. She ignored him, however and watched Jack who's eyes opened slowly and her blearily looked at her from over his blanket mountain.   
"Captain Jack Sparrow, luv. Captain." He said groggily. Anamaria growled.  
"How many times do I have to tell you to refrain from using luv, darling, muffin or cakes?" She asked through gritted teeth. Jack smiled.   
"Sorry sunshine." He said. Anamaria growled and left the room, hardly listening to the laughter of Gibbs and Jack. Once out of the room, however, Anamaria smiled slightly. Sunshine...that she'd have to learn to hate.   
"Good morning, Ana." Elizabeth said as Anamaria joined Will and her in the dinning room...excuse me, hall! Anamaria's eyes traveled over the room with it's high ceiling, oak paneling...chandelier and exquisitely carved table and chairs.   
Will laughed, bringing her attention back to him. "Like it?" He asked. Anamaria smiled and nodded, taking her seat three chairs down from Will. "It's a lot, to much..." He looked over at Elizabeth, "My father-in-law."   
Jack and Gibbs appeared as the food was being served. Gibbs smacked his lips and walked forward, eyes on the food but Jack grabbed his collar and held him back. "Sorry Mr. Gibbs." He said, pulling his friend away from the table and back towards the door. "We have a ship to catch."   
Elizabeth stood up and motioned for the chairs at the table. She seemed a lot warmer to Jack then she had the night before. "Please, Jack." She said, watching him intently. "Sit. There is plenty of food and I've been wondering how long it's been since you've eaten. You look famished." Jack stood there eyeing her and, weather intentionally or unintentionally, let go of Gibbs who almost ran to the table and sat down, grabbing everything with in reach. Now that she thought of it, Anamaria hadn't seen Jack eat much in the past few days to...maybe nothing at all. He sighed and took his chair beside Anamaria.   
The food was delicious and the kitchen maids made continual appearances at the table, asking what they thought. Jack didn't answer which was okay because Gibbs was overly enthusiastic about the whole thing. Elizabeth sipped at her tea and Will engaged Jack in conversation.  
"How far away is the island?" He asked. Jack took a small bite of toast. Anamaria had been watching him and realized that was the biggest bite he'd taken. He'd hardly taken anything and not even half the plate was gone yet. "How far from here?"   
"Few days sailing bout." Jack answered, swallowing his bite and placing the toast in the middle of the plate, atop his half-finished egg. He reached for his water glass instead and made a face at the taste. Apparently, water was meant for sailing, not for drinking. "We have enough material and supplies to get there. May be trouble coming home." Anamaria looked over at Elizabeth and heard Jack's faint voice say, "If I come home."   
"What about Ethan?" Jack was playing with the rings on his hands, apparently deep in thought and did not answer right away.   
"Race him, I guess." He said. Will smiled at Anamaria who was still a little worried about Jack's last comment. "Get a few supplies here. My crew's waiting just in that little cove south of here...I think." He looked at Anamaria who nodded. Now that he'd been sober for a day, he was actually thinking. It scared her slightly.   
"What if he gets there first...Ethan?" Will asked. Jack looked at him, grim.   
"Pray." He said.  
  
Elizabeth rushed around her and Will's room, packing a few cloths into the trunk at the foot of the bed. They'd be leaving soon and she wanted to be ready. Will was on the porch, looking out over the water. "What happened to the helpful blacksmith I married?" She asked, looking over at him and folding a shirt. "Get over here and help me."   
Will sighed and looked to the south, apparently to the cove that hid the Black Pearl. "My father is alive Elizabeth." He said suddenly. Elizabeth set down the shirt and left the trunk, walking over to him and wrapping her arms around his waist. "I can't believe he's alive. Why did he never come to me? Why'd I never see him."   
"He had his reasons, Jack said that." Elizabeth said. Will shook his head.  
"Jack doesn't have all the answers." He said. "I want to hear it from his mouth." Will turned to face her. "You're not coming Elizabeth. It's bad enough I'm going to disappear." Elizabeth pulled away looking scandalized.   
"What? No. I'm coming with you. Jack is my friend to and..." Will put a finger on her lips to silence her.  
"No. It's to dangerous." He said. "You'll have to stay, tell people I went to England for a while and I'll be back later. Okay?" Elizabeth shook her head.   
"No, I..." Will looked up, over her head to the doorway. Gibbs stood there, watching them, obviously waiting for a break in their conversation to jump in. When he saw his moment, he took it.  
"Sorry to bother you Mr. and Mrs. Turner." He said, "But, we're almost ready to go." Will nodded and left Elizabeth, going to the trunk and closing the lid. Gibbs shook his head. "No way yer goin' to get that down to the cove without anyone seein'." He said. Will sighed, opened the trunk and pulled out a few things. He stuffed these into a rough sack and followed Elizabeth from the room before she could protest.  
  
"All this talk about curses and poisons and bottles..." Anamaria said, looking over her shoulder at Jack who was straightening his bandana in the full-length mirror. "Is it all necessary?"  
"Better to be on our guard, right luv?" Jack said. Anamaria cringed at the 'luv' and growled.  
"You daft fool, don't call me luv." She snapped. Jack smiled at her in the mirror.   
"Not darling, muffin or cakes...didn't think you liked sunshine. Did you?" Over the course of breakfast, Anamaria had learned to hate that name and shook her head. "What should I call you then?"   
"Anamaria." Anamaria answered. "Like a real person. Like a member of your crew. Not some penny whore from Tortuga who you had a one night ride on." Jack straightened to his full height and turned to face her.   
"Wouldn't be worth my penny." He answered. Anamaria grabbed a pillow off the bed and threw it at him. It hit him in the face and slid to the floor. Jack sighed and turned back to the mirror to re-straighten his bandana. "See what I mean?"   
Anamaria walked over to the window and pulled open the door, stepping out onto the balcony. "You are the most daft, crazy, sorry excuse for a pirate that I have ever met!" She yelled. She heard Jack's soft laughter in the room. "If you weren't dying..."   
"Oh, so you believe me now?" He asked. Anamaria turned back to him and smiled evilly. "Don't believe you." She said. "Never will. The only reason I said that was because...because... I hate you! You make me cringe! You make me want to hit someone! You preferably."   
There was no answer from behind her. Anamaria took in a deep breath and turned only to find the room empty. Stanping her feet, she made an 'urgh' ing sound and crossed the room to the hall. It was empty to.   
She found Jack and Gibbs down in the kitchen with the maids, Will by the back door looking out. One of the women handed Jack a thing of bread. "For the journey." She said. Jack smiled and took it, watching her walk off. When he saw Anamaria, he smiled.   
"We were just going to leave you to steam." He said as Gibbs walked off to join Will. "Pick you up next month some time." Anamaria smiled sarcastically and grabbed the bread from him. "I'll carry that oh captain, my captain." She said. Jack smiled. "Wouldn't want to burden your troubled hands."   
"Thank you Anamaria, keep it up and you may make dish washer. Now, let's go."  
  
The cove was silent as they made their way down the sloping hills to the sandy beaches. Elizabeth breathed in the familiar smell of the ocean, eyes on the Black Pearl who sat in the cove. The men were on board, waiting.   
At the bottom, Jack and Anamaria were pulled aboard first, arguing about one thing and another. It had been a job to shut them up on the way here, lest a guard heard them bickering like a married couple. Will turned to face her when the two fighting pirates had disappeared over the railing. He smiled sadly, eyes running over the crates and stuff still to be boarded that waited on the beach.   
"I'm sorry Elizabeth." He said. Elizabeth grabbed his face with her hands and made him look at her.  
"I'm coming Will." She said. Will shook his head.   
"No. I'm not risking you or little Albert." He said. Elizabeth smiled in spite of herself.   
"I thought you didn't like that name." She said. Will shrugged.   
"I'll get used to it." He grabbed her then and pulled her into a tight hug. She listened to the beating of his heart and closed her eyes, not wanting him to go. Jack had said a few weeks...that would be like an eternity. When they did break apart, Will kissed her softly then boarded the ship with out even a backward glance. They both knew if he had looked, he never would have left. When he was gone, Elizabeth turned, only to run into Gibbs.   
"Goodbye Mr...." Gibbs grabbed her hand and pulled her behind a large and open sided crate, the side laying on the ground at her feet. "What's going on?"   
"Inside, quick Mrs." He said, shoving Elizabeth in. Elizabeth began to protest but Gibbs stopped her. "Quiet." He said, looking around fearfully. "Only way on Cap'n Jack's ship is this way." And, with that, he closed the crate and Elizabeth heard him order men to nail it shut. She was trapped...and going on this journey weather she liked it or not.  
  
Done this chapter. Tell me what you think please.  
  
DragonHunter200: Yay for Bootstrap. I wanted to set up Ana's past for later on, when it would be needed. I like that you like to review! Thanx. I hope Johnny signs on to #3, it would be no movie without him. I was having trouble with formatting. Sorry, I noticed to late. 


	7. Bill Turner

Sorry it took me so long, you know how things happen. I had to finish my other story...then school...then work...uh! Anyway, I had trouble putting this chapter together, I didn't want it to reveal to much...it did, so I had to get it to not...it didn't reveal enough. I don't like it right now but, you know how things go. Please, R&R!  
  
Chapter seven- Bill (Bootstrap) Turner  
  
Will looked around the familiar pirate ship with a slight smile and the strong feeling of guilt rising in his chest. Even though it was now under Jack's control, he would never have got it with out Elizabeth...as much as he'd like to think. He went to the rail and looked over the edge but Elizabeth was gone and Gibbs was hammering up a large crate.  
Will sighed and left the edge of the ship, walking instead over to Anamaria and Jack who seemed to have put their argument aside for now and talking rather civil to each other. Jack had taken the wheel from the small man and was leaning on it.  
"I think we should make for Tortuga, stock up and then head out for this island." Jack nodded fairly, watching Anamaria. She seemed to have a shaking voice...as though she were trying to control her temper. "What say you, Captain?"  
"I say it's good luv. Tell the men, call Gibbs and load these supplies. We leave in an hour." Anamaria walked by Will and he heard her mutter something like 'don't call me luv' under her breath. Will smiled.  
"I see you two have made it up." He said. Jack raised his eyebrows.  
"Made what up? There was nothing to make up." Will laughed lightly and leaned against the railing, watching his friend. "You have a question...I'm sure."  
"Yes, actually. I want to know more about my father." Jack sighed and Will could tell, even though Jack's back was to him, that the other was wearing a very sullen look. "Please Jack. I need to know...why did he never try and find me."  
Jack left the wheel suddenly and walked away towards his cabin. Will, surprised by this abrupt movement, followed. The crew were loading the crates from below into the hold. They'd be setting off soon. He bumped into Gibbs on his way, knocking the other over.  
"Sorry." He said. "I didn't mean to..." Gibbs shook his head and dusted himself off.  
"It's alright." He said, walking away with a weird backward glance at Will. Ignoring it, Will came to the Captain's cabin. The door was locked. Raising a fist, he knocked hard three times and waited.  
"Jack, I know you're in there." Will called through the wood. Still, the captain didn't reply. Carefully, Will opened the door and peered in. "Jack?"  
"I'm here." Came a voice in the corner. Will opened the door the rest of the way and saw Jack standing by the cabinet in the corner, drinking deeply from a rum bottle.  
"You're stalling." Will said.  
"Yes." Jack answered truthfully, taking another large sip. "That would be what I'm doing." "I asked you a question." Jack nodded but didn't turn. "Will you answer." "Whelp, how am I supposed to answer a question I don't know the answer to?" Will entered the room and closed the door behind him. "I don't know." He said. "Where do you think my father could be?"  
  
Bill Turner sat quietly in the corner of his cell, the stench of blood and old water floating around him in a nauseating smell. He knew he was to stubborn to die but to weak to keep fighting. Now he sat somewhere in the middle, balanced precariously between life and death, tipping neither way. He wanted to sleep but was scared he'd never wake.  
Had Jack even received the map and the note? Would he believe it was authentic? What would he do with it? Would he get there before Ethan? All these thoughts raced through his mind and his thoughts turned to his son. He'd gotten his wife to teach Will the story from an early age and, therefore, drill it into his brain. That'' why he'd left in the first place, to protect Will so people wouldn't follow him to his son. He'd hidden the fact he even had a child for a long time, and finally told Jack. He hadn't told anyone but Jack what gender his child was and, when the curse had been lifted four years before, he had not tried to look for his son because he knew Ethan was still searching.  
He sighed and leaned his head against the wall, wincing as his back hit the wooden side of the ship. He'd heard stories that Barbossa was dead...that Jack had killed him. Rumors and tales of the curse of the Black Pearl's end had reached him even in Britain. He could remember walking into the moonlight and, for the first time in ten years, seeing flesh not bone. It had been a wonderful feeling but he'd worried about his son. That would mean Will had been caught. He wondered if the boy was alive still and journeyed to Port Royal to see, as it was rumored that had been where he lived.  
He'd seen Will, near the black smith's shop with a fine and proper looking woman. They'd looked so happy and he'd vanished into the shadows. Jack though was a little harder to spot as, these days, he stayed hidden. There were rumors flying that he was dying but Bill wouldn't believe them. Jack Sparrow could not die.  
There was the sound of approaching feet on the stairs and Bill looked up to see Ethan and three other men coming down, one carrying a whip. Ethan was the spitting image of his brother, from their scraggly hair to the eyes and nose.  
"Ah," Ethan said, leaning against the bars. "You're awake. Good. Maybe now you'll be forth coming to answer questions?" Bill smiled slightly. "Or not?"  
"I like you're ambition Barbossa." Bill said weakly. "But I won't answer anything." Ethan shrugged.  
"Suit yourself but, I'll ask you anyway and remember..." He indicated the man with the whip. "I have an incentive to talk." Bill eyed the whip closely, the pain in his back flaring at the sight of it's black coils. "Where is you're son, William?" Ethan asked. "We know he's not in Britain where his mother is buried so where is he?" Bill said nothing. "Fine, tie him up."  
The three men came in and pulled Bill into a standing position. There were manacles in the other end on this room and they put his hands in the cuffs, pulling them up above his head. Ethan came to stand in front of him, trying to catch Bill's eyes. When Bill wouldn't look at him, Ethan sighed.  
"You're not making this easy Turner." Ethan said. Bill looked up and spit in his face. Ethan wiped it away slowly and look a deep breath as though he was trying to calm down then raised his hand and smacked Bill hard across the face. If Bill hadn't been tied he would have fallen.  
"You're son, where is he?" Ethan asked as though there had been no interruption. Bill shrugged as much as his manacles would allow.  
"I haven't seen him for..." The whip came down across his back and he cried out. Ethan watched him calmly then continued.  
"You were saying?" Bill didn't reply. "Where is you're brother?" Bill looked away from Ethan and the whip cut him again. "I ask you where is your brother? He's a hard man to track down so I want to know if you've been in contact with him."  
"No, I haven't seen my brother for near ten years." Bill was slashed again but this time he didn't make a sound, which is what Ethan wanted.  
"What is the story of this island?" Ethan asked, holding up his copy of the map. "What are all the vials for? Which is the real one?"  
"They are there to confuse." Bill said simply, this was actually the semi-truth. "They each have their own story and they are all real."  
"Don't play games with me Turner." Ethan spat. "I want to know what each of these Vials contain." Bill glared at him and only received a smart smack across the face. "What are they?"  
"The Fated Parting." Bill yelled. "I won't tell you anymore." Ethan raised an eyebrow.  
"I'll just have to ask you're brother and son when I get them." Ethan said. He looked over Bill's shoulder. "Give him ten and cut him down." He said.  
CRACK! The whip took his breath away and Bill watched Ethan go through misting eyes. CRACK! "Will can look...(CRACK) after himself...(CRACK) Ethan. (CRACK) But, I'd worry about (CRACK) my brother catching (CRACK) you before I get (CRACK) loose." Bill wheezed. Ethan turned. (CRACK)  
"You think I'm worried about your brother?" He asked. The whip came down two more times and was gone. The men let Bill loose and threw him to the ground where he lye in a heap on the wet deck. "You're brother, Jack...he doesn't scare me." And with that, Ethan was gone.  
  
Elizabeth sat in the large dark crate. Claustrophobia was setting in and she was starting to get the feeling that a large animal was trying to get free from her stomach. She needed fresh air and water! There were voices out side the crate's door...muffled but definitely a man and a woman. Someone was prying open the crate door.  
He twisted her hands in her lap, fear and nerves setting in. She was afraid that someone would be mad when they found her...maybe kill her on the spot. She wanted to get out so bad, though, she was less afraid.  
The chink of light widened and Elizabeth took in the fresh air as a face met hers, Gibbs. "Oh thank god!" She said, climbing out and taking Gibbs' hand when he offered it to her.  
"Here you go Mrs. Turner." He said, handing her a white shirt and black pants, obviously Anamaria's. The dark woman smiled at her and left with out a word. "Put them on and then we'll go up." Elizabeth went behind the crate and began putting on her new cloths.  
"What about Jack? He won't take me back will he?"  
"No, we're on our way to Tortuga to get supplies then we're off to the island. There'll be no time to take you back." Gibbs said. Elizabeth immerged and twirled on the spot, showing Gibbs. He nodded his approval.  
"Won't Will be surprised." He said, smiling.  
  
DRAGONHUNTER200: Hey, back again! Yeah! No one can resist Jack Sparrow! If anyone woke me by screaming in my ear, I'd do the same as you. Don't worry. My brother once stuck twelve icecubs down my shirt and used a horn. Hey...my dream is to be smuggled aboard a pirate ship! I like to think of the banter between Jack and ana as...my parents. I read your one with Will finally revealing why he left Liz. It was great.  
  
ALTENG: I like to hear from you to. It's nice to have regular reviewers. About reading to much, so am i. I'm also writinhg to much also. Bad luck...two women on board? Double the trouble! 


	8. Cold Fever

Chapter eight-Cold Fever  
  
Jack sat in the corner, a slight smile on his face as Will ranted and raved at Elizabeth, who sat at the table with her right leg crossed over her left, tapping away with her arms crossed. She had a semi-glazed look so Jack had the impression she wasn't listening.  
"...to sneak aboard and risk your life? It's down right absurd...reckless, bloody reckless! What's worse, I told you to wait and tell everyone where I had gone, well...not said where I had gone but said I was in England. Now we've both disappeared and...what is everyone going to think? Did you for once think about the mission we are on, or what Jack would think?"  
Jack finally spoke up. "I actually don't mind. I think having to women on board is..." Will over road him.  
"I don't care, did you wonder what I would think? Did you care? What about the baby?"  
"The baby will be fine Will, don't you worry about that." Elizabeth said. "And besides, I wasn't just going to sit at home worrying about you or let my friend go off to the unknown alone. Just..."  
"I don't care Elizabeth. You're lucky Jack is so lenient with us! If it was any other pirate ship you would be killed or whipped." Will cried.  
"But it's not any other pirate ship, it's the Black Pearl and Jack is a fair man." Jack winked at Elizabeth from behind Will and smiled slightly.  
"She has a fair point there." Jack said. Will spun around and glared at him.  
"Jack, you're more of a hindrance then a help, can you please leave?" Jack looked around the Captain's cabin with a cocked eyebrow and a slightly surprised look.  
"Oh my...I must be in the wrong cabin." He said in mock surprise. "I think I'm in the Captain's cabin...oh wait. I'm the captain and Will Turner is the dish washer." He smiled. "What a funny 'lil world."  
Will sighed. "Please Jack, can you leave for a minute, give Elizabeth and me some privacy?" Jack got up and swayed to the door.  
"Well, if you put it that way, how can I refuse?" and with that he walked out. The night was rather cool and her wrapped his jacket tighter around himself in an effort to keep the chill away. It seemed to follow him where ever. Anamaria was at the wheel and he decided to go bug her for a while.  
"Go away." She said monotonously as he reached her. "I have no time for drunk sots." Jack sighed and leaned against the railing.  
"Firstly, there are not many places to go because this is a pirates ship and Will and Elizabeth are fighting in me cabin." He shrugged. "And second, I am the Captain, savvy? I can come or stay anywhere." Anamaria looked away from him, back out to the water.  
"Do you think we're doing the right thing?" She asked. "Disturbing a treasure that was not meant to be found? I mean, look at the treasure of Cortés. What if something like that happens again?"  
"It won't." Jack said. "I have the brains and the Will to do this right." Anamaria raised an eyebrow.  
"Oh? Well, you had his father last time and look what it got you. The drop off on a dead little island." Anamaria laughed lightly but Jack didn't move. His face was quite blank and he was staring at the deck. It was most un-Jack like. "Jack?" Anamaria left the wheel and went towards her Captain slowly. "Jack, are you alright?"  
"Fine." Came his muttered reply. He looked up at her through blank eyes and turned away from her, walking towards his cabin. "Think I'll go to bed..." Just then he fell to the deck in a heap. Anamaria ran forward and turned him over. His face was pale and his skin was so cold. She'd never felt anything that cold in her life.  
"Jack?" She shook him and looked up to see Gibbs walking forward. "Gibbs! It's Jack, help me!" Gibbs raced up the stairs and kneeled beside then, running his hand above Jack's mouth to check for breath.  
"He's breathing okay...don't smell rum." Anamaria smoothed the hair back from his face and leaned in closer to look at him. He was so...there was something really wrong with him.  
"Let's get him to his cabin." Together they managed to get Jack to the Captain's cabin. Elizabeth and Will left their arguing aside and helped Anamaria and Gibbs lower Jack onto the bed.  
"What happened?" Elizabeth asked, sitting down beside him as Anamaria pulled his blankets over him. Anamaria shook her head.  
"He's just tired, that's all." She said. "Needs rest. I'll stay with him tonight and you two can use my cabin. Gibbs will show you where it is." She stared at Gibbs who stood there a moment watching her before he let the words sink in.  
"Oh...right." He said, catching on. "Come then, let's go. Ana knows what she's doing." He ushered Elizabeth and Will out and closed to door quietly behind him. Anamaria sighed and looked over at her Captain as she began to strip off her boots. Maybe she could warm him?  
Slipping under the blankets to, Anamaria placed her head on his shoulder and held him close to her, feeling his cold skin on hers, even through all the cloth between them.  
"Bill..." Jack muttered. Anamaria, who had been drifting off, stared awake and sat up so she could look at Jack.  
"Jack?" She asked, placing a hand on his cheek. He didn't move and she thought she'd just been dreaming his voice before he spoke again.  
"Sorry...didn'...mean...couldn' save...wasn' my..." He opened his eyes suddenly and stared at her. "Mother." He said, "Where's Bill?" Anamaria, startled at being called 'mother', said nothing. "I have to tell him I'm sorry...it wasn't my fault."  
"Who's Bill?" She asked, wanting information. She knew Will had a father named Bill but she wasn't sure it was the same thing.  
"Bill's my brother. I saw him in the field. He was kissing that girl...what's her name..." Jack closed his eyes as if in thought. "May or something...anyway, I wanted to tell him it wasn't my fault."  
"What?" Anamaria asked.  
"With father...it wasn't my fault. I didn't mean for it to happen...it just did. The horse spooked, I couldn't stop it. She got underneath and the horse killed her. I'm sorry."  
"Who? Who did the horse kill Jack?" Anamaria asked.  
"You should know." He said simply. There were tears in his eyes now.  
"Jack? Pretend like I don't know." Jack sighed.  
"Molly." He said. "My sister, Molly. She got under the horse's hooves. I'm sorry. Tell father that...will you? Tell him I'm sorry? Please...tell him not to hate me anymore. I'll make it right some day, I will."  
"Jack, it's okay." Anamaria said, running a hand down his cold cheek. She could feel sweat under her fingers. It was almost like he was having a cold fever. "It's okay...rest. Shh..." Jack's eyes closed and Anamaria listened to his breathing.  
"May went to save her...she was killed to." Anamaria lay back down on his shoulder. "It was an accident, I swear."  
"I know Jack." She said. "I'll tell him, don't worry...I'll tell everyone."  
"Bill loved her." Jack continued. "You know that don't you?" Anamaria nodded.  
"Yes...I know." Jack sighed and Anamaria felt his breathing slow until he was asleep. She couldn't help but be slightly shaken by what she had just heard. "I know Jack."  
  
Jack woke slowly. His world was a blank, he could remember leaving the cabin and Will and Elizabeth...he was approaching the wheel but after that there was nothing. He hadn't been drinking so that wasn't it.  
He tried to roll over but there was a weight on his shoulder. He opened his eyes slowly and looked down to see Anamaria's head there, in the crook between his chest and his shoulder. She had her hands above the heavy blankets, resting on his chest. Maybe he had been drunk last night.  
"Anamaria." He whispered, moving his shoulder. Her eyes stayed tight shut. "Ana." Again she didn't respond. Jack sighed and leaned back in his pillows. How was he going to wake her up...somewhere deep down he knew he didn't want to wake her up but... "ANAMARIA!"  
Anamaria screamed and jumped up, getting tangled up in the bedding and fell off the edge of the bed. In her decent, however, she grabbed Jack's arm and pulled him with her so they were both on the floor in a heap, him on top. Suddenly, the door opened and Gibbs walked in.  
"Ana," He said, closing the door behind him, "Hoe's he..." He stopped at the sight of Anamaria under Jack on the floor. "Oh." He said. They could both see the thoughts in his head as if his face was glass. "Right, I'll just be on me way then..." He went to open the door but Jack stopped him.  
"No." He said, rolling off Anamaria. "We were just finishing, actually." Anamaria reached over and smacked his leg but he didn't move. "Where are we?"  
"Tortuga sir." He answered, the red tinge still in his bearded cheeks. "Anything else sir?"  
"No Mr. Gibbs, that'll be all." Gibbs left muttering something about 'Curses' and 'muddled brains' before he closed the door. Jack watched the closed door for a moment before turning back to Anamaria. He offered her his hand.  
"No thank you." She spat, getting up herself. "I can do it. I don't need your hand." Jack shrugged and went over to the cabinet in the corner to get some rum. Anamaria watched him, wondering how much she should tell him. He opened the cabinet and rummaged through it before turning back to her.  
"We need to get Rum in Tortuga." He said. Anamaria put on her worst face.  
"You drunken dirty sot!" She yelled. Jack watched her storm out and slam the door before turning back to the empty cabinet. He really had to love Anamaria.  
Anamaria walked to the wheel and pushed Moises aside. "I'll take her into the bay." She snapped. He walked away in surrender and Anamaria gazed at the water without really seeing it. She didn't know how much longer she could love Jack Sparrow with out cracking.  
  
To My reviewer:   
DRAGONHUNTER200: Stalling for time by drinking. No, not healthy. The large animal part and the stomach was gross, I'll admit. Oh well...it was fun. I used to have these nightmares about that but it wasn't my stomach...it was my legs. Torture scares me, it really does. So, to go with what I want I have to scare myself I guess...I don't know. You know, to tell you the truth, I never thought about how Bill got captured so thank you. Nice brother you got there eh? Your poor cat. 


	9. Sail on the horizon!

Hey, school is finally out! Yeah! I got my year and report back and I passed...GRADE 11 BABY YEAH! Anyway, enough about me and my bragging. This is an okay chapter...Jack's half-naked near the end...No NO NO NO! Don't skip it all and go right to that! The good stuff always comes at the end of everything! Hold on! Read really really fast then if you're so anxious!  
  
Chapter nine ship on the horizon  
  
Tortuga was less enjoyable then Anamaria had ever remembered it. Even the fight in the bar with a large bellied ugly brute wasn't as fun. She was glad when they finally started off again. "Secure the rigging!" Jack yelled, walking across the ship and bellowing orders left and right. "Watch that cable! Secure that barrel! Gibbs, that can go down below!" Gibbs, who had been holding a barrel of rum fondly under his arm, looked up at the captain through misty eyes.  
"But...sir," He began. Jack shook his head warningly and Gibbs stalked off, muttering under his breath. Anamaria held the wheel beneath her hands, feeling the rough black wood with loving hands. This was not just Jack's baby and he wouldn't boot her off wheel duty so easily. She could see it in his eyes as he approached that that was what he was about to do.  
"Luv," Anamaria glared. "You can leave. I'll take her out."  
"No, you can rest you look exhausted." She gave him an up and down sweep, taking in his wrinkled cloths, getting looser and looser on him every day, his pale face and kohl-less eyes which were still ringed with black. "Please...Jack."  
"Cap'n sweet heart. Go." He tried to take the wheel but Anamaria stood her ground.  
"If you don't want a smartin' face you'll be takin' your hands off the wheel." She growled. Jack pressed a shoulder into hers and tried to body check her aside but she still wouldn't move. "No." She hissed. "She may be your ship but I brought her into the harbor and I'll take her out."  
"Listen woman." Jack hissed back, both unaware that the Black Pearl was slowly moving left, into another ship. "Give me the wheel." Anamaria shoved him harder, both sliding on the slippery deck.  
"No." She said. "Get your own!"  
"This is mine." Jack whispered. Many of the men were now either watching them or watching the other ship, which was getting far to closer for comfort. "I could have you whipped for this." Anamaria let go, shocked and Jack took the wheel. She stood there, watching his back before she walked away, with out even so much as a backwards glance and didn't slow her pace until she'd gone to the crew quarters. How could he threaten her like that?  
  
Jack watched her go, a strange surge of pleasure washing through him until it turned to guilt, rising like bile in his throat. He'd just threatened to whip Anamaria, the one person on the ship he felt comfortable with. She'd only been looking out for him but...but what? He was afraid to lose control? Jack turned away from the other ship they had been about to crash into and waved at the men on board who were shaking fists and throwing insults at him, taking the Pearl into open water. He didn't want to lose control...he didn't want to lose Anamaria and, with a sickening thought, he realized that out burst had not been his. It was the curse it had to be.  
Gibbs came up the stairs slowly, watching him. Jack didn't remove his gaze from the ocean until his old friend was right up beside him. "Lil power struggle there Cap'n?" He asked. Jack smiled and shook his head. "Lil love struggle there Cap'n?" Jack looked at Gibbs evilly. "Both tryin' to wear the pants?"  
"You've gone to far Gibbs." He said, warningly and realizing at the same time he didn't want to say that to Gibbs either. Gibbs shrugged and leaned against the railing. "Me and the miss don't love each other and never will."  
Gibbs chuckled, much to Jack's annoyance. "Ah, is that why ye refrain from usin' her name?" He asked. Jack took a deep breath and looked out to the ocean. "Because you couldn't bear to make it any more personal?"  
"Don't you have rum to drink?" Jack asked. Gibbs took his weight off the rail and walked away.  
"Aye, I do." He called over his shoulder, leaving Jack to think about what he had said.  
  
Anamaria walked slowly down the rocking staircase, worn and warped in some places as so the wood bent beneath the weight of her step, and hit the main hall through which she walked, passing the galley and taking in the warm smell of food. The cook, Marseilles gave her a friendly smile and waved her over to him.  
He was cooking a weird gruel mixture and wanted her to try it. Anamaria tried not to make a face at the disgusting taste that filled her mouth and thought with almost a weird longing, the crap they served in Tortuga. "Very good Marseilles. Just a little more flavor." Marseilles nodded and went back to his cooking. Anamaria turned to go but found her way blocked by Jamey.  
"Move." She snapped. Jamey held his ground.  
"I saw you having a lil' spat with the Cap'n." He said, grabbing an apple from a bowl beside him. "Not givin' him the wheel when he asks is dangerous. Look at poor Georgie."  
"Georgie was an idiot and deserved what he got. I am no fool now, move." Jamey smiled and looked over Anamaria's shoulder at Marseilles.  
"The lil lady is mad I see." He said slyly. Anamaria clenched her fist and prepared herself for an attack, not by him but by her. She took a deep breath and, un-noticed by Jamey, took her stance.  
"I wouldn' make 'er mad." Marseilles said. "She's no' one ta back down." Jamey gave Marseilles a skeptical look over Anamaria's shoulder.  
"I could take her." Suddenly, Anamaria lunged with the speed an agility she'd acquired from her years in Tortuga. She grabbed Jamey with one arm looped around his throat, holding his hair tight with her fist and the other around his waist. They crashed to the floor and Anamaria managed to get on top of him, holding herself so all he could do was flip and squirm beneath her. Before he knew it, Anamaria had grabbed Jamey's left hand and seized the index finger and the thumb and was wrenching them apart.  
"Do you surrender?" She yelled. Jamey tried to get loose so she grabbed his nose and twisted. "Do you surrender." Still he didn't answer but grabbed the back of her neck so she grabbed his arms and pulled the left on to the right and the right one to the left so they crossed over his neck. Jamey's face turned red before he finally screamed mercy.  
"Tough lil bugger ain' 'e?" Anamaria smiled and left the galley, heading up the hallway and rubbing her neck where Jamey had grabbed her. Little bugger had lasted longer then she had thought he would. She found Elizabeth at the table in her cabin when Anamaria entered.  
"Oh, hello." Elizabeth said, looking up only for a moment before returning to her writing. The book's pages, Anamaria could see, were almost completely full and, as she watched, Elizabeth turned over a new page and wrote on a fresh sheet. "You look bothered about something."  
"I'm fine." Anamaria said, going to the dresser and pulling out a fresh shirt. "Will you be using my cabin again or is Jack giving you new accommodations?" Elizabeth's quill stopped scratching but Anamaria didn't turn to ask why as she pulled the new shirt over her head and threw the other beside the bed.  
"You're mad at Jack." She said. Anamaria turned around to look at the other woman who sat watching her by the light of the candle beside her. Anamaria glanced out the tiny round window and realized that the sun was gone.  
"No I am not." Anamaria answered defensively, sitting down on the bed. Elizabeth raised an eyebrow. "Guess you heard about the fight."  
"No, I heard about no fight. I've been down here by myself since the crew started loading supplies. Tortuga is an awful place, one which I do not intend to go to any time in the future I might add." She dipped her quill in the inkpot and began writing again. "It was just the subtle way you said his name that put me onto the conclusion that you had a fight with him."  
Surprised, Anamaria unintentionally leaned closer to Elizabeth. "How so?"  
"Well, you usually say his name different. Either with a soft tone or one of thoughtful tone that also suggests some other things as well." Anamaria could guess what those other things were but was glad Elizabeth was giving her the chance to play dumb at that. "Tonight, however, you spoke with much more vehemence which told me you to had been fighting so..." She trailed off and Anamaria got up and sat down at the table across from her. Looking down at the loopy handwriting, which she couldn't read, Anamaria thought about what Elizabeth had just said.  
"You can really tell...everything?" Elizabeth smiled blandly.  
"Only women can tell those things, don't worry." She said. Anamaria smiled at her and then pointed to what Elizabeth was writing.  
"More baby names?" She asked. Elizabeth shook her head.  
"No, it's a journal of everything that has happened the last few days. I just started not to long ago." She sighed and closed the book. "It'll be finished by the end of the journey. I wrote one for the last adventure I had. Maybe, someday, it'll be a book."  
"Oh, what did you call it?" Elizabeth's face blushed but only for a moment. Evidently she was a little embarrassed about the subject.  
"Pirates of the Caribbean." She said. "The Curse of the Black Pearl." Anamaria smiled.  
"I like that." She answered. "I like that a lot."  
  
A few days later, the Black Pearl was to be found anchored near a small island a ways out, rocking gently on the water. The crew had been increasingly agitated and Jack had decided to give them a break. Elizabeth and Will played in the water in a small cove a short distance away from the other men, swimming in the deep clear water, kissing and splashing.  
The crew themselves partied in the water and on the beach, barrels of rum here and there some bone dry others not even cracked. Gibbs led a corus of a 'Pirate's life for me' to the annoyance of Anamaria who decided to go and explore the island by herself.  
As the sounds of 'We're devils and black sheep and really bad eggs, drink up me 'earties yo ho' faded and the sound of swaying palms took it's place, Anamaria slowed down and let herself be engulfed by the cool shade around her.  
About half way into the deep forest of lush green, the sound of a waterfall met her ears and she sped up, anxious to see it. It was a towering wall of cascading water, falling steadily down from a tall rocky ledge. Anamaria was just about to climb down the grassy slope towards it when a figure at the bottom met her eyes.  
Jack was there, right underneath the falling water, up to his waist in the pool below. She could see the tops of his pants just about the black pool but other then that he was completely naked. She ducked down behind a bush, unsure as to why she was hiding from him, and watched, her eyes roving over his bandanna-less brow and bead free hair, to his chest with it's bullet scars and deep cuts to his waist, submerged in the water.  
He turned away from her and she gasped at the long thin lines that were cut deep into his back from a whip no doubt. She had never seen his back before and now it startled her. When he turned back his eyes were closed so Anamaria thought it safe to make her escape until...  
"Anamaria, come here please." Jack's voice floated up to her; just audible over the tumbling water he was submerged it. Anamaria turned slowly and looked down; Jack's eyes were still closed. Sighing, she walked carefully down the slope, slipping and sliding in the mud until she reached the bottom and sat on a damp rock to watch her captain. He tilted his head back and shivered, letting the water run down his face. "How long have you been standing there I wonder."  
"You know, for a man who's always freezing to death you seem to be enjoying that water immensely." Jack smiled and let his head drop, opening his eyes to stare at her.  
"It's a little cold." He said, shivering again, weather to exaggerate his point or by accident she didn't know. "Why don't you join me. Get clean yourself."  
"I am clean." Anamaria replied. Jack chuckled.  
"That's why you smell like Gibbs in the stables." He closed his eyes but opened one enough to look at her. "Is there something you haven't told me?" Anamaria smiled sarcastically.  
"No, I tell you everything." Jack nodded and closed his peeping eye. Sighing, Anamaria sat there for a moment then began to strip off her boots, wading into the cool water still in her pants and billowing white shirt. The water actually wasn't as cold as she'd first thought when looking at it.  
She played away from the waterfall for a few minutes but the look of the falling water was to tempting and soon she was under it to, standing side by side with Jack as the beads massaged her body.  
"Feels good?" He asked. Anamaria smiled.  
"Very." She replied. "When I was younger, my father took me to a waterfall. We played under it for hours. The last time I was under one was with..." She almost blurted out her husband's name but fell silent, glad when Jack didn't encourage her to continue.  
"I haven't been under one since the Pearl was taken from me." He said. Anamaria opened her eyes and turned to him, blinking away water that ran into her eyes.  
"About the other day," She began. Jack spun around to look at her so fast it made Anamaria step back in alarm. He held up a hand and she fell silent.  
"No, it was actually..." Was he apologizing? "Will's fault." Anamaria's heart sank. That would have been a story to tell in pubs, 'Jack Sparrow apologizes'. No one would have believed her. "Damn whelp got me all worked up about his stunts in Tortuga I lost me head. If you're going to hit someone, let it be him."  
"I'm not going to hit anyone." Anamaria said. "And I doubt it was the whelp." Jack raised an eyebrow. "You were at fault so don't go blaming him."  
"I'm at fault?" He asked. "You're the one who wouldn't give me the wheel luv."  
"Don't call me luv!" Anamaria said, her voice rising. Jack's was to.  
"You don't have to be in control all the time darling. The crew won't think you're weak or something if you're a girl because you can't pilot the bloody ship!"  
"You don't have to be in control all the time either." Anamaria retorted. "The crew won't think you're weak if you tell them what's really going on with you or what we're really doing. They're smart, they'll notice sooner or later that you're sick!" Jack's face suddenly paled. "And you can confide in me about the nightmares you have." She'd just blurted that out, revealing to him that she knew about the horse. Jack stood there watching her with his mouth hanging open. He seemed to be tipping like a scale between yelling at her or kissing her. Anamaria couldn't take it anymore. She spun around and waded through the deep water to the edge. She was half way out of the pool before Jack grabbed her and spun her around to face him.  
"Don't you walk away from me when I'm talking to you." Anamaria turned and smacked him hard across the face. Jack grabbed her around the waist and suddenly they were under the pool's surface, fighting with each other, Jack pulling her down and her hitting him to get away. When they surfaced bother were exhausted and Jack's cheek was beat red.  
"Don't grab me like that again." Anamaria said, wrenching her arm from his grasp and slapping him again. "That's for pulling me underwater." Suddenly he grabbed the back of her neck and pulled her close to him. She tried to get away but he was too strong for her.  
"Don't slap me again or I'll pull you underwater." He said.  
"Then don't be a prat." She answered. They're faces were getting closer and closer. Anamaria could feel his breath on her face, stronger and stronger. They were going to kiss. She could feel the coolness of his skin coming closer to hers as if it was a heat radiating from it. As they're lips brushed, however...  
"Cap'n." Anamaria pulled away quickly and looked up the slope to the top. Gibbs stood there, sweat on his face and a look of panic. He didn't even seem to notice that the two people below had been on the verge of passion. "Cap'n there is a ship on the horizon." He said. Jack swore and waded to the edge, pulling himself out of the pool and grabbing his shirt and boots. Anamaria stood there for a moment before she followed. She walked a little way behind Gibbs, preoccupied with what had just happened...or didn't happen. Had they been about to kiss?  
"You told me to get you when somethin' like this happened sir." Gibbs was saying briskly. "You knew?"  
"I knew we were being followed." Jack answered, as they reached the beach. Anamaria looked out onto the water and saw a handsome pirate ship coming closer and closer, drawing level with the almost vacant Pearl. Jack took a telescope from Moises and squinted through it. He gazed at the approaching ship for a long moment before he smiled. "Tell the men to get ready for friendly company. It's okay, it's just Edward Mulan." Gibb's brow furrowed.  
"I've heard that." He said.  
"Yes. He's Cap'n of the Blue Sphere." Jack said. "Nice guy, good pirate. He knew Blackbeard." Anamaria rolled her eyes. It looked like they'd be dinning with crazy pirates tonight...more crazy pirates tonight.  
  
To all my reviewers: Thank you for your continued support of this fic. I feel so barren with out working on the first potc fic so, you keep my spirits up. Sorry it took so long, what with school, a summer job and having no internet and no inspiration. Just hang in there, I finally know where I'm going with this! Thanx!  
  
To my reviewers:  
  
GAZE: Thank you so much for stumbling onto my fic. It's wonderful to have a new reviewer! Thank you with your comments about how I have my characters down to a 't', I was kinda worried about that part. That was a great line, I liked it to so thank you again...man I say thank you a lot. Thank you again (again) and I hope you become one of my regular reviewers.  
  
DRAGONHUNTER200: Thanks, I liked the title. How late were you up that night? Just a question. Your so right, what did the rum eer do to anyone? Honestly. Yes, I didn't know if I should put that close a relationship between Bill and Jack but I finally decided to. Actually, my fingers decided for me and I just went along with them. I never did think of how Bill got captured but I'm gonna have I explained in the next chapter, if I remember, so don't worry. How old is your brother compared to you? Anyways, keep reading and reviewing.  
  
ALTENG: I've been kicked out of my own room and house before so I know what it's like...well, with the house I wasn't really kicked out, I ran out to get away from my brother in law who I was bugging and he decided to kill me. He just doesn't have any luck at all except for the flukie sort. I hope in the next potc they have that flukie luck again, hey? Gibbs always walks in on the worst moments, doesn't he? 


	10. night fight

**Hey, this is pretty much just a filler chapter and I promise the next one will be much more interesting. Very interesting! Sorry it took me so long, the two computers that i tried to get it on didn't work. There was something wrong with it so i had to try everything in my brain to get it up. **

**Chapter ten-night fight **

Jack sat apart from the other men, watching as they drank and partied around a big fire, much like the one he had made on the rum island with Elizabeth, which had been burning since before sundown. More to satisfy Anamaria then because he was hungry, Jack ate a large piece of bread while he listened to Mulan

"Ethan has two ships under his command." He took a large drink of ale and swiped a stray piece of blond hair from his green eyes and stretched out all six feet, three inches of himself, making it obvious why he had traveled with Blackbeard. "The other ship is piloted by a man called Ryan Molcuom and captained by Fredrick Marko."

"Marco?" Jack raised an eyebrow. "Fredrick Marco is still alive?"

"Are the seas still tossing?" Mulan took a large sip of rum. "Fredrick is very much alive and very much hates you." He smiled and winked. "Funny, I hate you to but we still manage to get along." Jack smiled and looked across the beach at the men, Carrion playing his violin and tapping his foot to a made up rhythm. Some of the men where dancing drunk and one was even approaching Anamaria.

"Brave man." Jack said, indicating the man. Mulan looked over to and laughed lightly. "Very brave or very stupid."

"Or very lucky." Mulan said. Anamaria glanced over towards Jack before she extended her hand and soon they were engulfed in the dancing crowd as they to joined in. Jack felt a strange twinge of jealously before he pushed it away and turned back to Mulan who was smiling, his eyes on Will and Elizabeth.

"He looks a lot like Bill." Mulan said. Jack nodded. "Have you told him?"

"Bout what?"

"Bout you being his uncle or has that slipped your mind?" Jack shook his head and Mulan sighed. "She looks kind of like May."

"She's not though." Jack said quickly. Mulan nodded, pain in his eyes. May had been his sister.

"You know, I thought Bill and May would marry." He said. "I thought they'd live happily ever after. But, when she died…I don't know. Did he ever really love Diane?"

"Must have." Jack said, "They had little William Jr. didn't they?" Mulan smiled. Jack's heart was beating fast. Any minute now, Mulan would say it was his fault. He had to change the subject. "Why did you follow me? It wasn't to talk about the past."

"No." Mulan sighed. "It was to talk about an alliance and get information."

"An alliance?" Jack shifted uncomfortably. He hated alliances. Allies always dragged you into something or turned on you when the winds changed. Usually he was the one doing the turning but, he'd known Mulan since they were kids and Mulan would turn just as fast if a better option rose.

"Yes. Ethan's made an alliance with Marco, a good alliance and now we are alone. You know my history with both of them." Jack nodded. "So, I was thinking…I hear that your going after some new treasure that Ethan wants. I want in."

"You want in?" Jack asked. "Listen mate, I go after this treasure alone." Mulan smiled evilly.

"Yes, but I have information. Ethan has Bill." Jack had to think a moment before he understood what he'd just heard. "Also, there's information the Navy hasn't even divulged to the public. Do you remember the pirates of the Black Pearl, under Barbossa?"

"How could I forget." Jack said.

"Well, you know me, I know everything." Jack smiled blandly. "They escaped before their hanging, the Navy never told a soul. Guess who they joined."

"Ethan." Jack muttered. Mulan winked.

"Yes, they are part of his crew and, since you hand picked them, you know enough about them to give us what we need." Jack sat there for a moment, thinking.

"What do you want in return?" He asked suspiciously but tried to keep his voice neutral.

"I want to know about this treasure." He said. "I want to know everything about this treasure."

"Well, it is an interesting tale." Jack said, yawning. "One which you will hear in the morning." And with that he got up and made to walk away. "Wait." Jack stopped and turned to face Mulan again who was looking distinctly ruffled. "How was Bill caught?"

"Out side a bar in Tortuga." Mulan said. "You're usual tavern I presume. Now that I told you that, you can tell me about this treasure." Jack smiled and shook a finger at him.

"You gave that information on your own Edward. I need to give you no reward." Mulan nodded fairly and Jack made his way through the dancing men to the rowboats on the beach. He wanted to go back to the Pearl.

"Jack." Jack turned and came face to face with Anamaria. Her hair was flyaway and she was puffing from dancing. Her partner was now asking Elizabeth who was politely refusing. "You leaving?"

"Yes, luv. And, it's Cap'n." Anamaria rolled her eyes but let the 'luv' part go.

"I'll come with you then, I've had enough of the party for tonight." She made her way to one of the rowboats and was shoving it into the water before she realized Jack wasn't there. Looking around, she found him at the boat behind her, watching her pointedly.

"This one." He said. Anamaria raised her eyebrows.

"I already started pushing this one into the water." She answered.

"Ah, but I like this one better." Jack said simply, looking down at it fondly.

"Ah, but I happen to have a fondness for this one Cap'n, and there isn't enough boats to take one each." Anamaria said, sure she had won.

"But I'm the cap'n." Jack said, "And I can leave you here if you like. See what it's like to be marooned for once." Anamaria growled and let go of her boat. Trying to push her anger away, Anamaria helped Jack push the boat into the water. It was a slow and awkward journey away from the shore. They rowed together, Jack humming the entire time and he didn't shut up until they had arrived safely on the Pearl.

"Well, good night." Anamaria said stiffly. She made her way across the deck towards the crew quarters. "You know what, I'm surprised so many women like you."

"Oh?" Jack asked. Anamaria stopped, her hand on the doorknob to the staircase below decks. "Why is that?"

"Because, you're such an insufferable…you're just so…I just can't see why anyone would like you." Anamaria finished lamely. Jack laughed and sat down on the staircase up the wheel.

"But you can't find a reason why?" He asked. She could hear the amusement in his voice. "Sounds like you like me more then you let on, luv."

"Don't call me luv!" Anamaria yelled. "You know I hate it!"

"That's why I do it!" Jack cried, laughing. "That's why I call you luv! Until you call me Cap'n I'll keep calling you luv, and Darling, and Sweetheart." Anamaria glared at him across the moon washed deck.

"Then I'll just have to leave and not be a part of it anymore. I can only call respectable men Cap'n." Anamaria said. Jack stood slowly and walked down the stairs.

"Threatening to leave?" Jack said, "Or giving me your resignation?" Anamaria felt her heart beat speeding up. What was she doing? She didn't want to leave the Black Pearl. She opened her mouth to speak but no words came out and Jack was getting closer. "I said, threatening to leave or giving me your resignation?"

"Leaving, going, gone." Anamaria finally answered. Jack stopped inches from her, his black eyes boring into hers. He looked grim and slightly ghostly in the shimmering white night. The sounds of the beach party floated towards them on the seemingly breathless night, the entire ocean seemed to be watching them. "I'm not part of your crew any longer Jack Sparrow. I hear by resign my post." Jack nodded and Anamaria left, going down to the crew quarters to collect her things. Mulan would let her on his crew, she hoped. Either that or she'd be staying on the tiny island-awaiting rescue.

She grabbed a small goat skin sack from her dresser and began filling it with cloths and her other personal items. She even grabbed Elizabeth's journal by mistake but didn't notice. This was it, she was gone and no longer a member of the Black Pearl.

When she finally made her way back up to the deck an hour later, it was to find it completely deserted. Jack had obviously retired to his cabin and was probably asleep, judging by the darkness filtering out through his windows. She felt slightly hurt that he wasn't even going to say good bye but tried not to think about it as she made her way back to the rowboats. The journey back to shore seemed like forever, longer then the journey to the Pearl with Jack. Mulan welcomed her on to the crew with open arms and that night she traveled to his ship, the Blue Sphere instead, anchored beside the Black Pearl. And, by the light of the full moon, she got a look at her new home.

**Hope you liked it. Like I said, it was a filler but there was some interesting stuff in there, I hope. Anyway, now what will Ana and Jack do? Stupid idiots, they love each other! Can't they see it? (Deep breath, or should I say Depp breath) Oh well.**

To my reviewers:

ALTENG: thank you, i would have flipped them the bird to, but this was a long time ago and the other ship, some of the men may not have had all their fingers. Yes, Jack and Ana are having power struggles and there is more to come. of course, since i am a woman, ana will win at the end...all men have to have a short leash. Please keep reading and reviewing.

GAZE: thank you for reading again. I hope you like it so far. I never thought of Ana as annoying this chappy but i guess you're right. Thanx for saying you liked my lines.


	11. Bloody Hell!

Hey! I'm back. I've had a really bad day so you're reviews helped. Thanx.  
  
Chapter eleven -Bloody Hell  
  
It had been two days since the crews met together and now the Black Pearl led the Blue Sphere over the green/blue water, finally on their way to the Island of the Fated Partings. Jack stood at the railing, his eyes on the other ship. Gibbs stood behind him, securing some cargo to the main mast.  
"What's on yer mind Cap'n?" He asked. "The treasure?"  
"Yes Gibbs..." Jack said absently, more to himself then to the man behind him. "A treasure." Gibbs nodded, only hearing 'Yes, treasure' and walked away as Elizabeth took his place. She stood behind the captain for a long time before she made her presence known by clearing her throat. Jack didn't turn around but stood quite still, gazing at the Sphere.  
"Why so preoccupied Jack?" She asked, coming to the rail beside him and leaning out enough so she could see his face properly. Jack shook his head.  
"Not preoccupied, luv. Tired." He answered, finally looking at her. Elizabeth could see what he meant by tired. He was drawn looking and his tanned face had taken on a white color. "Maybe I should go to bed, eh?"  
"Maybe." Elizabeth said quietly, her eyes travelling to the Blue Sphere to. "Or maybe you should make it up with Anamaria."  
"How will that solve fatigue?" He asked. Elizabeth knew he was blocking and the best she could do was try to out wit him and back him into a corner.  
"Maybe your conscience will be clear and you can sleep better." She pointed out. Jack smiled slightly and turned around so he was facing her. He took a great show of leaning on the railing in the right way as to be comfortable before he answered.  
"Don't have a conscience." He said with an impressive sigh. "Pirate." Elizabeth sighed back.  
"You have a heart though. It may be black in some places but it still beats well enough I'm sure." Jack shifted again and opened his mouth to speak before Elizabeth stopped him. "You don't like to hurt people Jack. I know this."  
"I do what I need to so as to survive Elizabeth." He said. "If I have to hurt people along the way then I have to hurt people. I may not want to, not saying I don't like to hurt the occasional person, but I'm a pirate. Have a reputation to protect to."  
"I heard a new story." Elizabeth said. Her eyes traveled to the sunset and a smile took her lips. "You met a mermaid. Mermaids are good luck Jack, but this mermaid, you fell in love with her." Jack raised an eyebrow.  
"What idiot told you that?" He asked.  
"It was a woman in the market. The thing is, Jack, the mermaid...she was as black as the Pearl." Jack looked around the ship, his eyes hitting the mast and the sails, the deck and the wheel, which Jamey stood at.  
"I was polishin' the lady on the front the other day." He said, pointing to the very front of the ship where Elizabeth knew there was a sculptured woman. "Maybe they saw her." And suddenly, he'd walked away with out even a 'goodbye'. Elizabeth watched him. "Mr.Gibbs, wake me at midnight. I'll take wheel then."  
"Aye, Aye Cap'n." Gibbs answered. Elizabeth turned back to the ocean, her eyes on the Sphere; she ignored the sunset. Where all men thick, or was it just pirates?  
  
Anamaria stood at the wheel of the Blue Sphere. She was tired; so tired so could feel every muscle in her face, especially in her eyes (Sorry DragonHunter200) as if they were on fire. She leaned on the wheel, trying her best to ignore the men watching her as if they were hungry dogs and she was their first meal. Captain Mulan was a kind man, like Jack, but he ran a tighter ship then Jack, and there was no rule breaking on his ship. On Jack's ship, if you disobeyed an order you would suffer his displeasure and feel bad for it...making you probably fulfill you're task. That was the kind of man Jack was, he commanded respect with out force. Mulan, on the other hand, used extreme force. A man Anamaria only knew by sight disobeyed an order the first night she had been on board, and been whipped the following morning.  
Anamaria, therefore, had been working extra hard for the past two days and was far more exhausted then she had ever been in her life. As sunset was drawing to a close and night was pulling its curtain over the sea, Anamaria was approached by Mulan.  
"How are you doing Lass?" He asked. Anamaria smiled and stood straighter, adjusting her course so she was again directly behind the Pearl. "You have a lot of experience with ships I see?"  
"Yes, I've been on ships my whole life, the Pearl was the longest." Anamaria felt a twinge of longing for her beloved ship but she didn't let Mulan see it. "Feels good to be on another ship, sir."  
Mulan leaned on the railing and crossed his arms over his chest, watching her. Finally, he spoke. "What made you leave a ship like the Pearl to come to the Sphere? Jack's an excellent captain."  
"Only to those who don't know him." Anamaria replied. Mulan laughed.  
"Well, you either like Sparrow or you don't I guess. Personally, I hate his guts but, I could ask for no better man to be on my side." Anamaria was taken aback.  
"I thought you two were friends." She said. Mulan shrugged.  
"No, we're not friends. I hate him, he doesn't hate me. That's just the thing. We get along as 'mutual' allies. See, I help him get what he wants, he helps me get what I want and we don't see each other for another ten years. It always happens. It's just, it was my sister May, she was the one who like Sparrow's brother...I thought Bill was okay."  
"May?" Anamaria asked. Mulan smiled sadly.  
"My sister. She was killed in a freak accident when we were younger. Sparrow was to blame though it was really my fault. I spooked the horse." Anamaria's throat constricted when as she listened. The reaction wasn't from his words, though, but from his tone of voice as he spoke. It was bitter but, underlying the bitterness was a strange calm and...pride. She knew the sound of pride and arrogance; it was how Jack always spoke but that never sent shivers up and down her spine. "How much do you hate Sparrow?" Now he sounded suspicious.  
"A lot." Anamaria replied. "He calls me luv, there's no respect. I hate him! He drives me crazy, insane...I want to rip out his throat when he gives me those...those looks." Mulan smiled and nodded with a soft 'ah'. "Why?"  
"I want to see where you're loyalties truly lye." Mulan answered. He left the railing and came closer to her, towering like a tree and blocking the moon light from her eyes. Now she could see him better...he was smiling. "I want to know you won't run back to Sparrow when he calls."  
"I left the Black Pearl, her crew and her captain." Anamaria said with wholehearted conviction. "I have no loyalty to them." Now she was lying, if they needed help...if Jack needed help, she would do all she could to give her aid. "I am very good at switching my loyalty. You have my word, Captain." The words came from her mouth in barely a whisper for Mulan took that moment to reach out a hand and place it on her cheek.  
"Hush." He whispered in her ear as he ran a hand down her face and let it come to rest on her neck. She felt it moving slowly, so slowly as to hardly be noticed, down farther and farther to the neck of her billowing white shirt. "No more talking."  
He kissed her, kissed her like no man had kissed her before. There was no hunger in his lips, just the very thing she would have welcomed at that moment because it would have made her pull away and remember she didn't love him. She let herself be pulled from the ship's wheel and into his arms where there was warmth. There was no hunger; nothing to stop her for all she felt was passion and a deep love. She knew it couldn't be there, he didn't love her but she felt it as though he did. He was a good actor and she was good at pretending.  
Suddenly she found herself in his cabin, on the bed with him on top. She hadn't noticed that her shirt was now unfastened and all that stood between him and her bare chest was a tin under shirt she wore. She hadn't been aware of being lain down and hadn't been aware of him undoing the laces on her shirt.  
Why hadn't she noticed that she had willingly gone to the cabin of a man who didn't love her and was only pretending? The thought came to her and she suddenly said some one's name, quietly to herself but still loud enough for Mulan to hear and stop what he was doing. "Jack."  
"What?" He asked, his left and in her hair, the other undoing his pants. "What did you say?"  
"Jack." Anamaria whispered with a small smile on her face. "You were telling me about Jack."  
"Can't it wait?" Mulan asked, sitting up and playing with the laces on his pants. "You're ruining in the mood." Anamaria propped herself up on her elbows and watched Mulan struggle for a moment, wishing he'd get off of her as his weight was getting heavy.  
"No. I won't be satisfied until you tell me. If you're against Sparrow I want in on it." Mulan stopped playing with the lace and sighed, rolling off of her and going to the corner of the room to grab some rum and two glasses. "Once you tell me the 'mood' will be restored."  
"Maybe for you." Mulan muttered. Anamaria smiled and took the rum that was offered her, drinking deeply. "I scared the horse. I jumped out of the bushes from behind it. I was trying to hurt Sparrow, I didn't know May was there." Anamaria gulped hard and choked on some of her rum. When her coughing subsided, Mulan continued. "May's neck was broken and so was Jack's sister...it was her back but she died shortly afterward of fever and complications. Bill was devastated...I was to. Of course, it was Sparrow's fault. If he had controlled that damn beast, May would still be alive. We shot the horse."  
"Why?" Anamaria asked. "It was yo..." She almost said 'you're fault' but stopped herself. "Sparrow's fault. Why not shoot him?"  
"He got hurt. Horse flipped, crushed him. If you ask me, gave him brain damage." Mulan laughed. "Once I get the rest of this information on this treasure," Mulan leaned over and stroked Anamaria's neck. She tried hard not to grimace and pull away at his touch; "If it's to my advantage..."He stopped at the look on Anamaria's face. "Do you know of it?"  
"No." Anamaria said quickly...a little to quickly. Mulan's eyebrows shot up. "Sparrow never told me stuff like that, being a woman and all." Mulan smiled and began kissing her neck. Anamaria could feel the fake passion again as if it were a mist around her and she had to think of Gibbs to stop herself from giving in. 'Pretend it's Gibbs, pretend it's Gibbs'. "Urgh." Anamaria said with a shudder. Mulan stopped.  
"What? Is it the rum?" Anamaria shook her head.  
"No, everything is fine." Jack needed that treasure to live. "When will you see him again? Soon, I hope, so we can get this treasure."  
"Soon. Tomorrow, we're stopping just off another tiny island and we'll meet there." Mulan took Anamaria's tankard away from her and set it on the bedside cabinet. "Come with me as my queen?"  
"Alright." Anamaria said absently. He was pulling her undershirt up now and running a hand over her stomach. "We'll learn of the treasure together...tomorrow."  
"Tomorrow. That's in a long time." He was playing with his laces again on his pants. Anamaria held her breath and waited. When he had finally got the last lace undone there was a sudden knock on the door. Anamaria smiled and wriggled out from underneath him.  
"I should get some sleep." She said. And, with that, she was gone.  
"Bloody hell." Mulan muttered as Anamaria disappeared and a man took his place in the doorway.  
"Cap'n, we need help with something."  
  
Anamaria made her way down to the under parts of the ship, so different yet so the same to the Black Pearl. She even had her own cabin here only it wasn't as fine. When she entered her room she blew out the candle, locked the door in the dark and lay down on the bed with her face in her pillow. She felt violated even though he had done nothing to her but kissed her and made advances. She hadn't wanted that though his touch had been intoxicating.  
With out warning, the itch in her eyes that warned of break down, melted and was replaced by tears and sobs that racked her body. What had she done? She should never have left the Pearl! She should never have left Jack! She could almost see the deck of the Black Pearl as though she were on it right then. The moonlight was cascading down the sails and was bouncing off the wet deck causing it to shimmer. She was at the wheel, looking up at the stars, master of the ship until Jack came back at midnight. All the men feared her; there were no snide remarks or catcalls...no captain hitting on her.  
She could feel Jack's skin beneath her hand, cold as ice yet colder. She could see his sleeping face when he had the cold fever, whispering about this or that...the horse, his father...his sister. Suddenly it hit her. If she hadn't been here, if she hadn't left she would never have known. This small bit of discomfort was for a greater good. "Bloody hell." She whispered.  
  
It was midnight. There was a soft knock on Jack's cabin door but it didn't wake him. He was freezing and cold water, the waterfall on that small island, was falling down his head and shoulders. He was holding a woman in his arms but he could only see the top of her dark head. He held her close to him as she wrapped her arms around his waist. Suddenly there was a stabbing pain in his back and red warmth began to blossom in the water around them. His own life's blood was draining away.  
The woman pulled away, taking her dagger with her. It was Anamaria. This time she stabbed him in the heart. Jack couldn't lift his arm, couldn't clasp his hand over the wound as blood spurted out again and again with every beat. Gibbs opened the door slowly, inch by inch until he could peak his head in to see his captain.  
Jack was on his side, his face pressed in to the pillow, his eyes tight shut and a pained look on his face. "Jack?" He whispered. Jack moaned and rolled over, opening his eyes slowly. His heart still hurt as though the knife had been real.  
"Gibbs? What time is it?"  
"Midnight sir." Gibbs reported, stepping farther into the cabin. "Are you alright sir?" Jack nodded slowly and tried to sit up but the pain was still there, more intense then before. "Sir? Are you sure you're alright?"  
"Yes, Bloody hell!" Jack laid back down, sweat pouring down his face and prickling all over his body. "Get Elizabeth please."  
"What? Why?" Gibbs asked.  
"Just get her for bloody sakes!" Jack yelled. This action made his cabin whirl and his head pound. There was pain not just in his chest now but all over his body. "Get her Gibbs, just go." Gibbs nodded and took off.  
  
"Bloody hell." Will muttered as a furious pounding erupted on their cabin door. Elizabeth moaned and rolled over, climbing slowly out of bed. Will sat up to, knowing any moment he'd fall back into the cover and drift off into the comfortable abyss of his pillows but, as long as Elizabeth was up, he'd have to be to or he'd hear about it in the morning. It was Gibbs.  
"Mr. Gibbs." Elizabeth said, squinting against the light of the candle in the man's hand. "What's wrong, you look awfully flushed."  
"It's Jack Miss Elizabeth. He's taken an awful turn. I need you to come with me." Elizabeth turned to look at Will in the dark for he'd sprung up out of bed and was dashing around the room trying to find his pants. Gibbs handed Elizabeth a second candle and lit it with his own. "No time to get dressed Miss. The men won't care; there are hardly any on deck. Please hurry." As they made their way up the stairs to the deck, Gibbs filled them in. "It seems to be his chest, his heart maybe."  
The three of them managed to make their way into Jack's Cabin with only one moment of utter confusion in which they all got stuck in the door. Jack was lying in his bed on his side, sweat pouring down his face which was clenched in a painful mask, and his hands clutching his chest as he gasped for breath.  
Elizabeth rushed to his side and tried to get Jack to look at her but it was a loosing cause. All she was able to do was roll him onto his back. His eyes were still tight shut. "Will, get blankets, he's freezing. Mr. Gibbs, find hot water, anywhere." Will and Gibbs rushed out of the cabin, leaving Elizabeth and Jack alone. "Jack, can you speak? What's wrong?"  
"What does it look like? She stabbed me in the heart!" Jack gasped. Elizabeth didn't understand. There was no blood coming from between his fingers.  
"Who?"  
"Ana! She got me!" Jack gasped, turning back onto his side and burying his face in the pillow.  
"Jack it was a dream!" Elizabeth cried, trying to get him to roll back over. "That was all, it's a dream!"  
"No! The pain is not a dream!" Jack yelled. "Elizabeth help me! I don't want to die like this! I want to die fighting for my life, not in bed with me own body killing me!" Elizabeth's heart was breaking, she couldn't stand to see him like this. "I can't! I can't!"  
"You won't!" Elizabeth yelled over them, sure the whole ship would hear them yelling. "You'll be alright!"  
Jack suddenly went slack and his head lolled sideways, eyes still closed. It seemed as if all his strength had left him and his heart fell from his chest. "I want the curse of Isla de Muerta." He muttered. "It can save me, it can cure me."  
"No, it can't, it'll punish you for all eternity Jack. The cure is only a few short days away." Jack smiled slightly.  
"Anamaria." He whispered.  
  
Anamaria woke in the dark with a start at that exact moment. Sighing, she tried to relax, sure she had heard Jack whisper her name in the dark.  
  
DRAGONHUNTER200: Hey! Ya, you forgot last time. Thanx. I'm glad you're back.  
  
ALTENG: hi. Yes, they're okay. Thanx for reviewing.  
  
To all: sorry I'm not answering very long but I had an aweful day so I have to go. By. 


	12. a whispered goodbye

Hey, sorry i didn't writ much as way of reply but like i said i had a bad day. Um, drive safe, live everyday to the fullest and dream BIG! PPL, DREAM BIG!

Chapter twelve-a whispered goodbye

Commodore Norrington sat in the Captain's cabin of the Dauntless, pouring over maps and such with Lieutenant Gillette. Both men were tired and ready to call it quits because it was well past one in the morning already. Little red dots littered the maps in various spots, all belonging to Sparrow. There were blue dots for Ethan Barbossa, green for Fredrick Marco and yellow for Edward Mulan.

"By all rumors sir, Mulan has now joined Sparrow." Gillette said, rubbing sleep from his eyes. "It's only a matter of time before those two cause more trouble and with Barbossa on the loose with Marco, things are looking bad."

"They haven't attacked any towns...yet. That's at least counting for something." Norrington replied. He'd been following Sparrow for four years and felt that he was at last close to catching the slippery bugger once and for all. Now, however, Sparrow had the Turners and, weather it was on their free will or not, they were on board and in danger.

"Barbossa's ship was spotted just outside here." Gillette pointed to a small coastal village. "Marco apparently met up with him there. Of course, you can always count on Sparrow to land himself in Tortuga and he was spotted there a few days ago." Norrington nodded and rubbed his eyes again, trying to rid them of their blur.

"Very well Gillette." He sighed. "You may leave for the night, we'll pick it up in the morning." Gillette nodded and left. Norrington laid his head on the table and fell asleep almost instantly, his dreams turning to Elizabeth like they did every night.

Bill sat in his corner, his head against the wall and his eyes tight shut. He was nauseated from the continuous rocking, lack of food and water and the continual beatings that left pain all over his body. Worse yet were the constant jeers of his old crew on the Black Pearl when one of them came to bring him what little food he was aloud.

"Lookie lookie." Ragettie jeered through the bars. "Yer awake, eh? Wan' some water?" And he threw the cup into the cell were it spilt all over the floor and sent the water into the cracks on the deck's straw covered surface. Bill watched it collect in the grooves between the planks and run in rivers down the deck towards him.

"Way to go." He said thickly, his voice cracking with thirst. "Now I have nothing to drink and you are in trouble with the cap'n. The only way I'm good to any one is if I'm alive."

"Actually." Came Ethan Barbossa's voice from the stairs. "Yer no good alive or dead." He came to rest at the bars, his hands clenched on the iron, Ragettie slinking away back into darkness behind him. "You haven't given me much and I am ashamed of you Bill...I really am." Bill smiled slightly. "We're almost there any how and I have a little surprise in store for the Black Pearl and for you."

"It's not y birthday yet." Bill said. "But thank you anyway." Ethan laughed roughly.

"Wit. You're brother has it to but I'm not sure about yer son, William. He's a fine lad." Bill's eyes narrowed.

"Shut up about my son you scum bag." He hissed. Ethan smiled.

"I have a surprise in store for him to, when I see him." He said. From behind him two men suddenly appeared from the darkness as if they were shadows suddenly becoming flesh. Each held a rope and left no doubt in Bill's mind what the ropes were for. "Tie him and let's get this started."

Jack woke slowly, his world trying to come into focus against a tide of pain that crashed inside his chest. It felt like he had been stabbed but when he looked there was nothing there, no bandages, no cloth...just his skin, whole and the same as it always was.

Elizabeth was in a chair beside the bed, her head back against the wall and her eyes closed, a small smiled on her lips. She was obviously having a good dream and, mastering the impulse to scare her awake, Jack slowly and silently sat up.

His chest ached harder then ever, a pounding that seemed to beat inside his ears to, so loud he was sure Mulan would hear it. Elizabeth didn't move or make a sound and so Jack got to his feet and moved across the room to find his boots. They weren't there by the door.

He turned swiftly and moved to the bed, getting to his knees and looking underneath. They weren't there either. He then noticed the room was clean. "Damn woman!" Jack growled under his breath, deciding he'd have to have the meeting with Mulan in his bare feet. Abandoning his cabin, Jack made his way to the deck and up to the wheel where Will sat talking with Gibbs in hushed voices.

"Where are my boots and what the hell happened to my cabin?" Jack asked, loudly interrupting their conversation. They both looked up, alarmed and obviously surprised at his sudden appearance.

"Jack." Will said, jumping to his feet. "We didn't hear you coming."

"Obviously. It's because I'm not wearing my boots. I had them last night and now they're gone, where are they and what the hell happened to my cabin?"

"Elizabeth happened to you're cabin Jack. When you're a married man you'll understand."

"I won't be a married man William, now where are my boots?" Will sighed and looked at Gibbs significantly before setting off towards the Captain's cabin with Jack right behind him.

"I'm sorry Jack, it's just that we needed to work a lot with you last night and we needed room to move. When we weren't tending to you we were cleaning...Elizabeth was cleaning."

"Working with me?" Jack asked as they entered the clean cabin. "What do ye mean working with me?" Will pulled Jack's boots out from beside the dresser and handed them to him.

"You were very ill last night Jack. We almost lost you a couple of times." A sudden yearning for the gold of Cortes hit him and Jack sank into a chair, waiting for it to pass and pretending to be fixing the bottoms of his shoes so Will wouldn't notice.

"Well I'm fine now so you can fix my room." Will smiled and went over to Elizabeth.

"I'm afraid you'll have no trouble doing that by yourself very soon Jack." He said. Leaning over, Will kissed Elizabeth on the lips and she woke with a start.

"What's wrong? Is he okay?" She looked over to the bed and Jack saw her eyes go wide before they moved across the room with Will's gaze and settled on Jack sitting in the corner of the room at the table.

"He's fine." Jack said, pulling on his boots. "But his cabin isn't. So, if you please, I need to change and get back to the order of things." He stood up and usured Will and Elizabeth from his cabin, ignoring the woman's protests. When he was done changing, he left his cloths on the floor near the door, just so in the case a crewmember got a glimpse in, they wouldn't think bad of him.

The two ships were coming together. The Black Pearl had stopped and was now waiting for the Blue Sphere to come along side her. Anamaria stood at the railing of the Sphere, the wind pulling her long black hair from her face. It was hard to keep her eyes on her old home and found that she needed to let them do their own thing and dart to the island a little ways away when ever they felt the need.

Jack was standing at the railing of his ship and, as the two ships were finally level and the Sphere stopped, they ended up face to face, both watching each other. Jack smiled slightly but didn't speak as he moved away from her and up the Pearl's deck to the plank that was being dropped. Mulan called over Anamaria and together they walked across to the Pearl with a few other crewmembers.

Jack and Mulan shook hands making Anamaria's stomach clench. There was something in Jack's eyes that she didn't like. There was a hidden pain there, a hidden secret and, as he looked over at her quickly, she suddenly remembered his voice in the dark the night before.

"Sparrow." Mulan said, extending a hand which Jack shook with two of his own. "Shall we?" Jack nodded, his jaw set so tight it looked like he had lockjaw. Elizabeth, who was watching from the railing, left Will's side and moved towards Anamaria who smiled slightly as when she saw her.

"Anamaria, can we talk?" Elizabeth asked under her breath as the two men moved away, Will joining them. Jack looked over his shoulder once at Anamaria before leading the way into his cabin. "It's about Jack..."

Anamaria raised a hand and looked deep into Elizabeth's eyes. "I have to go to the meeting, we'll talk later." Before Elizabeth could protest, Anamaria had joined Mulan at the door. She watched Mulan's hand move down Anamaria's back before she was pushed gently inside and the door closed.

"Now." Jack said, sitting down on one side of the table in the corner of his cabin, Will beside him. Anamaria sat down beside Mulan, directly across from Jack, her eyes in her lap. Jack, deciding he couldn't risk glancing at her, put his feet up on the table and blocked her from view. "Lets get on with it."

"Right." Mulan said blandly, glancing at Will. "Let's start with Bill. I know he knows what the treasure is."

"Bill was the only one who knew about it." He said, smiling. "Ain't that just the piss, eh?"

"Eh?" Mulan mocked him. "Yes, very. Continue."

"Okay. I got a letter from Bill a while back in Tortuga. It talked about the treasure of The Fated Parting. You know the story?"

Mulan sat forward in his chair, looking very interested. "I know the story...slightly. Why? Is it real?" Jack smiled and nodded. "How do you know?"

For an answer, Jack reached under the table and pulled out a small box. He set it on the table with a loud thunk and opened the lid. Anamaria stared at the items inside. The ring with a sparrow indent, the map with the five altars and the letter in French.

"I can't read this." Mulan said, picking up the letter and waving it in front of Jack's face. "It's nonsense."

"Well, no one said the French were not a nonsense race but, seeing as I can read, I shall read it to you." Jack took the letter back from Mulan and began reading it out loud in French. Anamaria sat there, listening to him, a strange feeling inside her. She'd never heard anything so sexy. He spoke clearly and quickly, his tongue wrapping around the foreign words as though he were born to speak them. Mulan sat there patiently for a few minutes before bursting out.

"I can't understand a damn word you're saying you bloody fool! Read it to me in English!" Jack stopped, a weird look in his eyes as though he had just thought of something...as though he'd just realized something.

He looked over at Anamaria who was watching him, flicking her eyes pointedly to Mulan with raised eyebrows. She was trying to tell him subtly to tread carefully around Mulan but she wasn't sure if she'd communicated it to him.

"Sorry," Jack muttered. "I forgot you can't read that can you...or understand. Very well." He laid the letter down and pulled out the ring. "This was how Bill told me it was him." He slipped the ring onto his finger and then pulled out the map. "And this is the map of the bottles." Mulan pulled the map towards himself and traced his fingers over it.

"All the bottles are cursed but one." Jack seemed to be weighing his words very carefully. With some it's the bottles...with some it's the potion inside. They contain the souls of female warriors or gods. The one I want is the special one...it brings back the lost."

"The lost? Anything?" Mulan looked up at Jack who nodded.

"Let's say someone's dead, you could bring them back." Mulan nodded. "If we get this, if you stay on my side I swear you'll have enough to bring back May, if that's what you're thinking." Mulan looked up sharply.

"Which one is it?" He asked. Jack shrugged and took the map back.

"I don't know, the letter doesn't say. Bill wasn't sure either. Or maybe he knew and he thought I'd figure it out." Jack shrugged and a sudden shiver ran over him. Will, Anamaria noticed, sat more perched on his chair, watching Jack through curious eyes. "One of these bottles, how ever, is the one I want."

"What will happen if you touch the others?" Mulan asked. Jack looked at him grimly.

"I don't know. We'll find out." Anamaria moved her eyes from the man across from her to Will, who now had the map and was looking over it with sharp eyes. Mulan pulled out a piece of parchment and looked at Jack.

"Do you have a quill and ink bottle." If Jack was taken aback by this he hid it well. Sighing, he got up and went to the cabinet, pulling out the wanted items and placing them in front of Mulan. "Thank you." He started writing, hiding it from Jack and Will. When he was done, he placed it back in his pocket and stood. "We must go Ana, come on." Jack watched Anamaria who stayed in her chair for a moment, watching him before rising.

When they were gone, Jack looked over at Will. "What are you looking at whelp?" He asked. Will looked up, surprised to see they were alone. Jack raised an eyebrow and Will composed himself quickly.

"Oh...um." Will squinted back at the map and then pointed at the direction sign in the far right hand corner. There was the north, east, south, and west pointers.

"What about them?" Jack asked, looking at them to.

"Well, the north. Look at it. It's different then the others."

"Usually." Jack said. "It's the most important."

"No, look at the prong pointing to the N." Jack stared at it and it suddenly hit him. His jaw dropped and he turned his gaze back to the main map, moving his fingers over the parchment surface to northern most bottle, the one that made the top point of the invisible diamond.

"This is it." Jack said. "This is the bottle, it has to be." Jack smiled and looked back at the north prong. The prong was in the shape of a diamond, so subtle he had never noticed it before. "You're more like you're father then I thought."

Mulan grabbed Anamaria's arm as the Blue Sphere moved away from the Pearl. He pulled her to his cabin and shoved her inside. "I saw the looks you were giving that two-bit idiot!" He snarled, pushing her onto the bed. Anamaria stayed still as he fell on top of her, holding her arms down.

"I was doing nothing! He's my old captain, we have small..." Anamaria was cut off by his mouth on hers.

"Shut up, the mood was ruined before, don't do it now." Mulan growled.

"What do you mean?" Anamaria yelled back, "I thought this was about Jack." Mulan smiled widely.

"We won't have to worry about Sparrow any more." He said. Anamaria's head snapped to the widow on her left. She could see the Pearl just out side of it. They were moving away, no longer following. He was going to take them around and shoot at the Pearl.

"No." Anamaria whispered. "No...you can't." Tears were welling in her eyes. "Oh god, Jack!"

"Cap'n." Gibbs was at the door. Jack and Will looked up at Gibbs who was sweating, mopping his brow with a handkerchief. "It's the Sphere sir."

"What about the Sphere?" Will asked, looking over at Jack who was still staring at Gibbs. "Jack?"

"They're attacking." He said, smiling. "The bastard is actually going to attack now." He began to laugh. "They're attacking now!"

"Have you taken the Mickey?" Gibbs asked, shaken from the doorway. Jack shook his head still laughing.

"I knew he'd do this. The moment he burst out at me like that." Jack said. "We're all about to die."

"You can't attack them." Anamaria said, looking up at Mulan. "You need Jack! He has the map!"

"No, I have the map." He pulled out the piece of parchment he'd been writing on in the cabin. "I have everything I need." Anamaria suddenly mustered up her strength and kicked up as hard as she could. She connected with his 'jewels' and he let out a pained moan, rolling off, clutching his groin. Anamaria took off, up onto the deck of the Sphere just as they were turning to shoot.

"No!" Mulan was suddenly behind her. Anamaria could tell by the commotion on the Pearl's deck that they knew what was about to happen. Mulan grabbed her and pulled her around to face him.

"You had to know that this was going to happen." Anamaria shook her head. "FIRE!" He spun Anamaria around and she watched as the cannon balls ripped into the sides of the Black Pearl, the crew of said ship rushing around to make their last gallant stand. Those poor bastards, it was a slaughter.

"Again, FIRE! Aim for the powder mag!" Anamaria watched in horror. The crew was rushing around, trying to load the cannons but Mulan had surprise and Jack had nothing. The crew were in disarray. Where was Jack?

The first blast had made Will, Jack and Gibbs look around to the solid wall of the Captain's cabin. A cannon ball ripped through the side of the cabin, ripping through the table, just missing Jack's leg as it passed. Jack hit the ground hard as pieces of debris floated over them, pummeling the bodies of the three men as they went. Outside, there were screams and calls of pain as men rushed around trying to help their crewmembers and load the guns to counter attack.

Jack felt a stinging on his stomach. He turned over and felt weakness spreading over him and a numb disbelief taking his place as he stared at his stomach. There was a large piece of wood embedded deep into his side. Will moaned and turned over, coughing as dust filled his lungs.

"Jack?" He asked, coughing harder and staring through the dusty air between them. When he saw the captain he looked shocked. "Jack? Oh my god..." He crawled over and placed a hand over Jack's side, the piece of wood in between his thumb and fingers. "Don't move."

"How can I not move when we're under attack?" Jack asked. Will's brow furrowed and he looked around the cabin. Most of the furniture was wreaked. The cannon ball had blown a hole through the right wall and taken out everything in its way until it exited through the left. Will stared through the right wall's hole and watched the Blue Sphere.

"Gibbs?" Jack called; trying to sit up but Will pushed him down. Gibbs' muffled voice answered.

"Under here." It said. Will crawled over, noticing as he did so, the amount of blood running into his eyes. Gibbs was under the dresser, which had been blown apart at the side and landed on him. "This is really heavy." A large amount of clothing was obscuring his face, muffling the noises from his mouth. "I can't breath." Will pulled off the cloths and smiled down at Gibbs.

"It'll be okay." He said bracingly, trying to pull the dresser up. "Come on, help me." Suddenly Jack was at his side, lifting to. Together, they managed to get the dresser up and freed Gibbs. "Jack, I told you not to..."

"I didn't hear you." Jack said. Still holding onto the wood with his one hand he staggered across the cabin and went out onto the deck. "All hands, prepare to return fire!" He yelled. Stebbins was at his side in an instant. Blood ran down his neck were there was a large gash and he was having trouble breathing.

"Sir, guns loaded. Awaiting the captain's firing order." Elizabeth was near the wheel, her hand on Moises's leg, which was spurting blood. The piece of wood that had cut him had hit an artery and he was bleeding out. Jack's eyes strayed on her for a moment before moving to the new crewmember, Marshal who lay dead a few feet away. He was only a kid. "Sir?"

"Anamaria's on the Sphere." He said. Stebbins looked over at the other ship whose cannons were moving. "Fire."

"FIRE!" Stebbins yelled. Both ships shot at the same time. The Black Pearl shuddered beneath them as the Cannons entered the powder magazine. Jack walked over the railing and leaned against it, knowing what was about to happen.

"Goodbye." He whispered.

The Blue Sphere shuddered as the cannonballs ripped into her wooden skin. Anamaria fell away from Mulan and got to her feet shakily, just in time to see the Black Pearl explode. "NO!" She screamed. The men on the Sphere screamed and yelled, happy with their accomplishment. Anamaria felt sick. She turned away from the scene and slid down the side of the railing onto the deck, nausea rising inside her. "Jack...god, Jack."

Mulan got up and began shouting orders. "All hands, assess damage. I want a full report." He grabbed Renalds. "Check Turner, make sure he's still alive." Then he caught sight of Anamaria. "And you, my lovely lady. We have a date to finish." Anamaria shook her head and stood up, her body shaking.

"Never." She whispered and, before they could stop her, she'd jumped into the water. Mulan looked around at the men grouped at the railing.

"Shoot her." He said.

DUN DUN DUN!!!!!

Stress over Jack! Poor Jack! Anyways:

Beautifully Immortal: Hey, it was so cool to see a new reveiwer, i'm glad you like it so far. About the whole lazy thing, i do it all the time, nothin to be ashamed of but i'm even more lazy and do annonomys if i can so...Enough more's? I'm only one person you know! Sorry bout the paragraphs, it's my comp, not me honest! Thanx and keep reading!

Sirhcevoli: Rockin' name, how do you say it? Anyway, Killing Jack...am i that cruel? Well, ya i am...please keep reading, you'll see.

Alteng: Finally, someone who i know! Oh ya, exceptianoal. I like firey women as my characters, you have to be weird to be a woman, so as not to fall into the 'role of normal'. Ya, poor jack. Thanx, keep reading, it gets better

typically Head-Over-Heels: Hey, cool, a new reviewer! Again! Sweet... Sorry it took me so long, in my review you sounded frantic. I hope this is fast enough. Please keep reading.

Gaze: hey, nice to see ya. best chappy yet? you think. ya, i wasn't really shure if i should have them on different ships but then i just wrote it so...Jackbraindamage? Maybe...maybe...beleive in jack and he'll pull through.

DragonHunter200: Fav lines! i love when you do that! you make me laugh with you comments. p.s, i've been meaning to review and read your other chapters. i'll read to night, i promise. Mulan is a dick. sex scene...or lack of it, was the most sexy thing i have ever written but, it'd be better with jack. please keep reading.

kungfuchick: i miss read your name at first. you can let your imagination go wild with what i thought it was. almost, not quitei agree. keep reading.


	13. Caught

Hey everyone, iiiiiii'mmmmm bbbbaaaacccckkkk!

I'm sorry it took so long but my dad was in the hospital and such so i was really buisy. See you all and if i forget anyone in the future you have the right to yell at me...over the internet of course!

Chapter 13-caught

Anamaria hit the water hard; knowing what she had just done would probably be her last act. Bullets began to stream into the water, shooting past her and missing her by inches. Thinking fast, she dived lower and moved along the bottom of the Blue Sphere trying to find cover.

The shooting stopped so she surfaced slowly and looked up to the deck. There were a few men leaning over the side but they hadn't noticed her. Taking a deep breath, she sunk down into the darkness again and swam out away from the ship and in the direction of the wreckage.

She needed air. Thinking maybe she could risk it, Anamaria surfaced and spun around to look at the Sphere. It was pulling away; she was safe...except for all the blood in the water. Sharks would soon be on the prowl and she'd be in trouble.

There was a storm coming, she could see the clouds moving over the water, getting far to close. They were near and island. If she could get as many survivors to the island as possible there was a chance she wouldn't be alone. Moving swiftly, she swam hard into the broken black wood. There were bodies everywhere and pieces of bodies. The Black Pearl, the last real threat in the Caribbean was gone, blown to hell by her own powder magazine.

"Hello? Anyone out there?" She screamed, turning on the spot as the first bits of rain began to fall, spattering on to her face. The waves were becoming harder, rougher. Soon, the storm would be on her. "Hello? Anyone?"

"Over here!" Anamaria turned to see Elizabeth holding on to a piece of wreckage. There was blood running down her face from a gash on her forehead and she seemed out of breath. Anamaria swam over to her and grabbed on to the wreckage to. "Are you alright?"

"I'm fine." Anamaria said. "I'm so sorry I left! I tried to worn Jack." Anamaria looked around. "Where is he?"

"I don't know, I can't find Will either." The water was blood red now. "Sharks."

"Yes, there's an island over there, we'll have to swim for it." Anamaria grabbed Elizabeth's board and began dragging her towards the island as the waves began getting rougher. By the time they reached the sand, neither of them could see because of the intensity of the rain now barraging them from all sides.

The two women made their way to the shelter of the palm trees and sat down beneath their leafy tops to try and block the rain. Shivering, Anamaria watched the water and the beach, hoping they weren't alone.

Bill opened his eyes and looked around from his huddled position in the corner of his cell to the staircase at the other side of the room. Two men were carrying a third slightly soaked one between them, the man in the middle's head flopping this way and that as though he were a puppet. Bill sat up straighter as they opened his cell door and threw the other man in.

"Some company, Turner." The bigger man said gruffly, locking the door again. "Have you ever met you're son?" They laughed and left. Wincing, Bill crawled over to the other and turned him over, surprised to see his own face only younger.

"Will?" Bill whispered, wiping away a few strands of brown hair. "Will?" Will didn't move but stayed still and silent. "Will, where's the Pearl? What happened to Jack? Is he going after the treasure?" Will's eyes fluttered but stayed closed. Bill sighed and pulled his son over to the corner of the cell, suddenly realizing that now he had something to fight for if he didn't before.

Anamaria's eyes had closed for only a second but before she knew it, Elizabeth was shaking her awake. "Don't leave me alone on this island." Elizabeth hissed. Anamaria sat up straighter and looked around at the other woman who was watching her intensely.

"I'm sorry." Anamaria said, looking back out at the rain pounding the beach and rubbing her eyes. "I didn't mean to drift off." Elizabeth shook her head and leaned back against the tree, eyes closed. Anamaria did the same but her head shot up again when she saw movement on the beach. Someone was dragging someone else across the sand from the water.

"Come on!" Anamaria said, slapping Elizabeth a little harder then she had intended on the arm and springing to her feet. The slight shelter of the palms had dried her more then she had thought and the rain felt to cool and to wet against her as she ran into the heart of it towards the two people on the beach.

Jack was pulling Gibbs along, both sopping wet. When he saw her, Jack did such a subtle double take you had to know him to have seen it and let go of Gibbs, falling onto the sand and panting. "I don't think he's breathing." Jack yelled over the pounding rain and singing surf. Anamaria fell to her knees beside the uncontious man and checked. Sure enough he wasn't breathing. Anamaria looked up at Jack. She could hardly see him through the rain even though they were so close.

"Let's get him to the shelter!" Anamaria yelled. Elizabeth was at her side suddenly and together they pulled Gibbs along and let Jack have a short rest. "Did you see anyone else?"

"No, they're all dead or shark bait. Gibbs was breathin' when I found 'im. They took Will."

"Who?" Elizabeth asked, letting go of Gibbs as they reached the safety of the trees. The rain still seeped in through their leafy roof but there were semi covered. Jack leaned over Gibbs and placed his ear to the man's chest, listening.

"Mulan." Jack said. "I dived when they came but they grabbed Will. Don't think they were interested in me anyway. I saw a ship a little ways off. Ethan's no doubt. By now, Will and Bill will be reunited." Jack suddenly tilted Gibbs' head back, pinched off his nose and blew into his mouth. The two women sat there, watching, not knowing what to do. Jack did it again and then started pumping quickly on Gibbs' chest, counting to fifteen and then breathing into him again.

"Jack, is there anything you..." Anamaria began but Jack shook his head and gave her a small warning glance.

"I don't need nothing from you." He growled, breathing into the other man again. "I'm a little preoccupied." Suddenly, Gibbs coughed and Jack turned him over onto his side and a spurt of water came forth. Jack smiled and patted Gibbs on the shoulder as the other stayed out of it. "Just don't tell him what I did. I'll never hear the end of it." Jack got up and began wobbling away towards the beach.

"Where are you going?" Elizabeth asked as she joined Gibbs.  
"I'm...jus' goin' to..." Jack was swaying badly. Anamaria stood up and walked forward a few steps before lunging out to catch him as he suddenly fell backwards. His weight, though hardly more then hers, knocked her to the ground but she managed to hold onto him. His head lolled to the side and she peered into his face. Elizabeth came over and kneeled down to then gasped.

"Ana, look." She said. Anamaria looked down to where the other was pointing and saw a large piece of wood sticking out of her captain's side. There was blood everywhere and she didn't know how she had missed it. "That's so deep."

"Okay, help me." They managed to move Jack to a tree trunk where they propped him up and Anamaria stripped off his shirt. There were tattoos here and there on his chest and torso, even one on his arm that she'd never seen before. Using the now bloody and wreaked shirt, Anamaria took out her dagger, tore it into strips and began tying them around his torso, moving the wood only as much as she needed.

"He'll never survive if we don't get this out." Elizabeth said, touching the offending object. Jack moaned but didn't open his eyes. "What are we going to do? Can't we take it out?"

"No, I don't know how and what we might do if we tried. We'll have to hope to be rescued."

"What are the chances of that?" Elizabeth asked. Anamaria sighed and placed her hand on Jack's cheek, pulling his face over so she could look at him better. His skin was so cold, she still couldn't believe he could live everyday with no heat in his blood.

"Great. You forget one thing. Jack Sparrow is a lucky man and he's here with us."

Will woke slowly. His whole body ached as though he'd just been beaten with a _hammer_ for hours. It took him a long time to regain his bearings so he kept his eyes closed and slowly his senses returned. He could feel the rocking of a ship first but he knew it wasn't the Pearl and he knew it wasn't a piece of wreckage because he couldn't feel the wind or the water...it was dark, maybe he was blind? No. A fuzzy image came to mind. He'd been floating in the water beside Jack as the Sphere came closer. Jack had sunk beneath the surface and Will had passed out.

His sense of smell came next. The normal salty smell came to him but there was another one. It was the smell of moldy straw and dampness with the rotting stench of food and maybe a body...and blood. Wrinkling his nose, Will let his hearing come next. There was the slight creaking of the ship and the walking and talking of crew far above him. There was also another...a voice close by, muttering.

Will opened his eyes carefully and found himself on his back, staring at the wood planks above him, dripping steadily, the drops making small cold pools beside his head. He turned his head to the left where the voice was. A man sat huddled in the dim light, his head back against the side of the ship, his knees pulled up to his chest. He looked very uncomfortable but had managed to fall asleep and now spoke in his dreams.

The man was his spitting image, identical except that he was older and more lined...perhaps a little larger to. Other then that, Will could see himself in that man's face. Slowly, his head spinning and his eyes stinging from the headache behind his eyes, he cleared his throat and said, "Father?" The man stirred but didn't wake so Will crawled closer. "Father?" The man jerked awake and raised his hands in self-defense. Will watched his for a moment and stayed silent until he'd lowered his hands.

"William?" He asked. Will smiled slightly and came closer. "I thought you'd never..."

"Father?" Will whispered. Bill smiled and suddenly he lunged forward, grabbed Will and pulled him closer, into a tight embrace. Will smiled and took in his father's unfamiliar feeling, taking It all in. After all these years he finally had the thing he's missed his whole life. "Where's Jack?"

Bill pulled away wincing and shrugged. "I don't know, you were the only one they brought in." He said. Will's brow furrowed.

"Are you alright?" He asked. Bill nodded.

"I'll fill you in." He said.

Anamaria tried to roll over but there was a weight on her shoulder. Slowly she opened her eyes and looked over. Jack's head was still there, resting in the crook between her chest and shoulder. She cleared her throat but he didn't move. The light from the sun was filtering through the palm tree's leaves and swayed in the breeze, shifting the shafts of light on Jack's pale face from one side to the other.

"'E's been sleepin' all night. Miss Elizabeth and I thought it best to let you doze as well." Gibbs said. He was sitting beside a dead fire pit, charred black logs and ash sitting inside. Anamaria smiled and looked around.

"Where's Elizabeth?" She asked. Gibbs pointed to the direction of the distant beach and smiled slightly.

"Don't know how she spects to get her cloths washed when they're just bein' covered in salt anyway but, the rich are funny that way."

"At least she won't smell." Anamaria retorted. "Unlike some I know." She raised her eyebrows but Gibbs looked at her unabashed.

"Shouldn' be insultin' the captain, not when he can't defend 'imself." Gibbs replied. Anamaria opened her mouth to speak but a voice from her shoulder stopped her.

"The lady's right, Mr. Gibbs." Jack muttered with out opening his eyes. "You're smell is pretty foul."

"Jack? How long have you been awake?" Anamaria asked. Jack opened a bleary eye and watched her from under a partially closed lid.

"Long enough to hear I wasn' the only one who thought Gibbs stank." He answered. "Where are we?"

"The interior of the island." Gibbs answered, standing up and coming over to them. "You look bad captain. Are you feeling all right?"

Jack glanced down at himself and an inquiring hand moved to the bloody tatters of his shirt and the plank of wood sticking from his side. He took in a sharp gasp as he moved it and then nodded. "I'm fine."

"I hear you kissed me last night." Gibbs said bluntly, a small smile forming on his mouth, tugging at it's corners under his beard. Jack blinked and smiled.

"Yes, it was great. I never thought kissing an older woman would be so wonderful." Gibbs' face turned beat red.

"I never thought being kissed by a younger woman would be so great." He answered. Anamaria smiled, as Jack stayed quiet for the first time in his life. He simply stared at the other for a few moments and then closed his eyes. "Captain?"

"I'm thinking of a come back." He answered. Gibbs laughed and looked up at Elizabeth who had just appeared in the clearing.

"There's a ship here." She said. Suddenly some one pushed past her and stood over Jack and Anamaria as another man grabbed Gibbs and began searching him for weapons.

"Well, well, well." The man said in a board voice. "If it isn't Jack Sparrow."

Jack opened his eyes and looked up, squinting against the light filling the clearing. He clenched his teeth and closed his eyes again, speaking in barely more then a whisper. "Well, well, well, if it isn't Commodore James Norrington."

kungfuchick: Hey, yah i love the name. Srry, i thought is said Kungfuchicken for a while and just relized it said chick! Srry! Oh well, what's up? I blew up the pearl, i'm srry but it was important for the later plot and end...srry, please forgive me...please?

mich: Hey, always happy to see a new reviewer. I'm srry it's taking me sor long to update, excuse at top of page. I hope you like the story and continue to like it.

DragonHunter200: as always you're little add ins make me laugh! I wanna know the slash joke, please...though i think i can figure it. the ain't that the piss, i use it all the time. i got it from a dream i had and it stuck. yah, i hate Mulan...sick your kittens on him! You go!

Typically Head-Over-Heels: Hey! I'm lazy 2 don' wrry bout it...C? Lazy, i swear! Anyways, Not the end of the story, don't sweat, i'm not that mean...usually. See, this is what happened to Jack, there's more to come tho.

meowface: Hey! Sorry it took so long and i'm sorry i left you scared...it'll all be good, you'll see...unless it turns bad...

Gaze: I made you gasp? Awesome! I am heartless...i'm sorry. Not...yeas i am! He pulled through that...there's more tests to come though (hint hint)


	14. Traitor hunting

Hey everyone! Well, sorry it took me so long but now I'm now back in school so I can update! Man, grade 11 already! This sux! Oh well, I'll get over it...slowly.

Chapter 14-traitor hunting

Jack closed his eyes and moved his head away from Commodore Norrington. Anamaria, feeling this action, looked down and saw the defeated look on his face. He was giving up? Jack Sparrow never gave up! Slowly, so as not to hurt him, Anamaria lowered him to the ground and then sprung up, sword in hand, ready to fight.

She met the first navy man before she was prepared. He lunged hard and fast, trying to knock the sword from her hand. Norrington shouted something but Anamaria didn't hear it, she had to protect them. She managed to get under the man's swing and come up behind him, slamming him on the head with the blunt end of her sword. When the man was down she turned.

CLANG! She whipped around and came face to face with the Commodore himself. He pushed forward and their swords disconnected. Anamaria took a deep breath and they began circling each other like a shark does to bait, sizing each other up. Norrington had been trained for combat and against pirates; Anamaria had picked up different moves from watching different pirates and had an unpredictable approach to sword fighting. There were pros and cons to both.

She lunged and Norrington sidestepped, knocking Anamaria's sword to the left. She couldn't get it around fast enough and found it to her back. They stood there for a moment before Anamaria threw her sword away in a sign of surrender. A navy man picked it up instantly.

Norrington came around to face her, sword still drawn. "Hand over all you're weapons." He said monotonously. Anamaria's mind was set. No way. Quick as lightning, she did a back flip stretching completely out and landing on her feet at least eight full strides away from the Commodore who was temporarily struck dumb in shock at what had just happened. He didn't stay struck for long.

As he rushed at her, Anamaria pulled out her gun and rolled sideways, coming up to find a sword at her throat. She raised the gun.

"You stab me and I'll kill you." She said, pointing the gun between his eyeballs.

"Make a move and I'll take you're bloody head off." He answered. "Don't try that trick again, you could have hurt yourself and we need you." Anamaria went to answer viciously but stopped. Now it was her turn to be stupid. Had he just said they needed her?

"What's in it for me?" She asked. "And what do you want me to do?" Norrington looked at the gun, his eyes staring down the barrel. If he was uneasy, he didn't show it.

"Can we talk on my ship?" He asked. Anamaria looked around the clearing uneasily and Norrington, studying her face, called out, "Put you're guns away. They are to have safe passage aboard." Anamaria raised her eyebrows. "All of them." He lowered his sword and Anamaria lowered her gun.

"I would rather keep the gun." She said as Norrington made to take it. He stopped, mid action and nodded, retracting his hand. Anamaria smiled her thanks and walked past him, eyes and ears still open for any sounds or movements of hostility towards them. None came and she reached Jack first. Most of the navy men seemed not to want to go near him.

"Will Mr. Sparrow make it to the ship?" Norrington asked, kneeling down next to her. Jack had fallen unconscious again; either that or he was listening and pretending, thinking of a way to get out of this. Anamaria nodded.

"He's been having a rough little while." She said. "I think he'll make it." Suddenly she felt guilty. It was all her fault this had happened. She should have warned him this would happen!

Norrington looked over his shoulder. "Go to the ship and fetch a stretcher, bring it back and hurry." He said. When the men were gone he stood up and went to Elizabeth. "We saw the wreckage of the Black Pearl. Was Will on it?" Elizabeth looked at him, shocked. "Don't think I wouldn't have known Jack Sparrow was in town nor that the Black Pearl was harbored off shore." He said, shrugging. "I want to catch him in open water, not drunk at you're mansion."

"Thank you James." Elizabeth said, tears sliding down her face. "Will's alive...I know he is." Norrington smiled slightly.

The men came back with the stretcher and carefully they moved Jack on to it. Anamaria walked slowly behind it with Gibbs, Elizabeth with Norrington. Gibbs leaned over, his face white and whispered, "Wonder what's on the captain's brain. I'm thinkin' he's awake an' doesn't wanna talk to the Commodore yet, eh?"

"I'm more curious with what the Commodore's after." Anamaria answered, glancing over at Gibbs. "Everything comes with a price Gibbs."

"Not everything." He answered.

"Name one." Anamaria answered. "I was let on to the Black Pearl because Jack knew I'd kill him if he didn't give me a ship. He still owes me one and once I get it..."

"You're gone?" There was something like skepticism in Gibbs' voice. Anamaria allowed herself to glare at him for a moment before continuing.

"Maybe." She said. "Like I said, everything comes with a price. I dare you to name one that doesn't."

"Love don't...and sometimes you can get free booty to, some of em women in Tortuga are just willin'." Anamaria chose to ignore him from now on.

They came to the beach a few minutes later. It was a bright and sunny day, the sun hanging high and the tides low. Many of Norrington's men stood at the rowboats, waiting and many stiffened when they saw the pirates.

The ship was really nice with twenty-one cannons at least. A little bigger then the black Pearl, men rushed around her and Anamaria could feel the pride in each one as though this was a castle. She'd tried not to think of the Pearl or look at the wreckage on the way over. Now, as she stood at the railing, watching the men cart Jack up, her eyes moved to the wreckage. Black boards...clothing...barrels...a table from the captain's cabin.

"We got as many bodies as we could." Norrington said. He'd been at her shoulder for sometime but she hadn't noticed. "We wrapped them and put them on the beach then we went looking for survivors. Anamaria's eyes moved to the beach where the bodies lay in a line, dressed in white canvas. A piece of the ship lay beside them like a tomb stone. Even from this distance, she could read the name, Black Pearl on the boards. "I'm sorry."

"It's alright." Anamaria said. She could feel the tears stinging in the corner of her eyes. "It's over now. We all have to move on."

"How many souls aboard?" He asked. Anamaria was never great shakes at counting but she took a stab at it.

"Bout twenty-seven." She answered. "Did you check the whole island? There could have been others."

"There were two others." Norrington replied. Anamaria looked up hopefully but he shook his head. "They died a short while later from injuries much worse then Mr. Sparrow's I'm afraid." They'd finally got Jack up and now Anamaria and Norrington watched as they moved him below. "I'll have my ship doctor look at him. Don't worry."

"Why are you doing this?" Anamaria blurted out. The Commodore looked taken aback but only for a split second.

"Doing what?" He asked innocently. Anamaria placed her hands on her hips.

"Helping us pirates." Anamaria answered, turning to him and meeting his gaze with her own. He hardly blinked, something Anamaria found slightly off putting. "You were willing to hang him a few years ago, hell there's a price on his head. Now, you're saving his life? Why not leave him and let him die and be rid?"

"You'd rather I did that? Be as bad as a pirate?" Norrington asked monotonously. Anamaria swallowed and waited for him to continue. She could hear that note in his voice that suggested he was to continue. "I am a member of a force that protects the citizens of her majesty the queen. It is my duty to enforce laws and look after the people under the crown. Though Sparrow, as an enemy to myself and the crown may not be entitled to the same treatment, Eliza...Mrs. Turner, Mr. Turner and of course all the people those pirates may hurt are my concern." He finally took a breath. "If I have to help an enemy to help others, so be it."

Anamaria turned away, nodding and looked back out at the wreckage. "Thank you." She said. Norrington, unable to hear her quiet voice, leaned closer.

"Pardon me?" He asked. Anamaria looked at him and smiled.

"You heard what I said an' don't make me repeat it. It's bad enough I 'ad to say it once." Norrington didn't smile at the female pirate but she could see the amusement in his eyes none the less. "Now, may I go see my captain?" Norrington nodded and Anamaria followed him across the deck and down the stairs to the underbelly of the ship. "All these red coats make me nervous."

"They should." Norrington said in front of her. Anamaria tried not to let her imagination get the better of her as she thought of all the things that statement could mean. "Here it is." Norrington pushed open a door at the end of a torch lit corridor and led Anamaria inside.

Jack was lying on the clean bed in the corner of the room, the table lamp next to him illuminating his still form with it's flickering light. Gibbs stood very close by, his arms across his wide chest, his bearded face showing his obvious worry as though it were made of glass. A man sat on the edge of the bed with a tray of metal instruments beside him, presumably the doctor and the man standing at his shoulder, talking to him was likely his assistant.

They were cutting away Jack's shirt with a pair of silver scissors. Anamaria clenched her teeth, what if they stabbed him by accident, or cut his skin? Maybe they really weren't trying to help him but were going to hurt him? Norrington seemed to see her worry because he bent closer to her and whispered, "They're very good and professional at their practice. He'll be fine, you have my word."

Nodding, Anamaria made her way over to Gibbs and got a clearer view of the wounds on Jack's body. "I can't believe he swam to shore like that." She said. The assistant, a kid hardly old enough to shave or dress himself, looked up suddenly and their eyes met. He smiled and returned to his work, glancing up occasionally. Anamaria ignored him, watching her captain.

After a few minutes, the doctor looked back at them. "Would you mind leaving? You're very distracting and it'll be a while." He had the ugliest, flabbiest face Anamaria had ever seen and the dullest eyes...like he was actually a moron. She suddenly wanted to kill him.

"You have sharp objects around our captain, you're strangers working with the navy and you want us to leave?" Anamaria shot out. The assistant smiled at her but Anamaria ignored him again. The flabby man looked angry and was about to retort when Norrington grabbed her arm and began leading her from the room.

"They're helping him, just relax." Norrington said. Anamaria pulled away from him.

"No, you stay away from me. I don't car if you are helping but I don't want you near me." And she stormed away up the stairs and on to deck, thinking all the while that maybe she should have died to.

"Ana...come on Anamaria, wake up." She one was shaking her shoulder. She jumped up, her eyes springing open, her arm slashing wildly with the dagger in her hand. Gibbs, who was standing well back, watched with humor as Elizabeth crouched in the corner, wide eyed. She'd evidently been the one waking Anamaria. Around her there was the cocking of many guns as the navy men reacted to her out burst.

Norrington rushed out of his cabin and came over, shouting for the men to lower their weapons. "Miss...um...pirate! Put you're knife down now." He instructed, "You could have hurt some one." Anamaria slowly lowered the knife and then stuck it in her boot, rubbing her sore neck. She'd fallen asleep on deck earlier and now was trying to adjust to the sudden night around her.

"What time is it?" She asked, looking around and finally helping Elizabeth to her feet. The proper woman wiped off her cloths and sighed.

"Late." She said, near mid night. The doctors are done with Jack; we've all been down to see him. He's still asleep." Anamaria felt her heart beat racing. Jack was okay! "You should go down now, the doctor will still be there." Anamaria nodded and walked off, feeling their eyes on her as she went.

Down the stairs, to the right, down the corridor. Her feet moved when her brain couldn't. All she wanted was to see Jack. She opened the door, sticking her head into the room. The doctor was hunched over the table, writing something on a piece of paper.

"Come on in." He said. Anamaria stepped in a let the door snap shut behind her. The flabby man was gone and the young man was the only one in there. "He'll be okay I believe." He turned and smiled at her. "Miss."

"Where's the doctor?" She asked. The man's smile widened.

"I am." He said. "The other man is my assistant. He puts in some work now and then, likes to think he's the doctor." Anamaria raised her eyebrows and the doctor laughed. "You think I'm to young?" He asked. "I assure you, it's only the lighting...I look young but I'm not. He even told me when he first saw me that he didn't want some eleven year old working on him and to find a real doctor." The man indicated Jack. "I'm Christian." He stood and shook her hand.

"Anamaria." Anamaria said faintly, watching Jack. Christian seemed to get what was in her head because he walked around her and went to the door.

"Well, Anamaria, I'll leave you two be." And he was gone, closing the door softly behind him. Anamaria went over and sat on the edge of Jack's bed, fighting back he impulse to smooth the thick covers over top of his freezing cold skin.

"I know you're awake Jack." She said after a silent minute. "You can't play that with me." Jack's mouth twitched into a smile and her opened his eyes.

"Look what the Commodore dragged in." Jack said quietly, looking her over. "Had fun with Mulan?" Anamaria resisted the urge to smack him.

"I tried to tell you." She said, desperately. "I wanted to. He's joined Barbossa..."

"Yes, he has." Jack sighed and then a lopsided smile replaced the other, "You know luv..." He paused and watched her for a reaction, "Maybe the pirating business isn't for me. Maybe I should become a merchant sailor...or a bar owner...a blacksmith...baker..."

Anamaria grabbed his shoulder to stop him. "Why this new outlook on life?" She asked ignoring the cold now penetrating her skin as well. "You're a great pirate...you'd suck as a blacksmith."

"The Pearl is gone again." He said, shrugging away her hand. "He's gone again and I'm to old to go traipsing around looking for a new ship."

"You're my age Jack, not that old." Anamaria said, stung. Old? How dare he! He cocked an eyebrow at her, smile fading.

"I can't go looking for another ship and...Barbossa's gotten the best of me again. Face it luv...it's over."

"Don't call me luv." Anamaria said viciously, "And don't you dare give up."

"I'm not!" Jack yelled, wincing. "I'm looking at the cold hard facts! I'm to...I can't go after another ship! I can't hunt my enemies down all the time! I can't wait ten years for revenge because I don't have ten years and what prize will I get from Barbossa anyway? What does he have that I need?"

"Patience! Faith! Hope! Health! Willingness to sacrifice things for other things! And he knows where the treasure is!" Jack looked shaken by her outburst and Anamaria, slightly shaken herself, took a few breaths to calm herself and then grabbed his face in her hand, ignoring the cold. "But you have morals...friends, a crew that'll help you no matter what."

"Crew?" Jack asked, looking around the cabin. "You and Gibbs? And, what, James Norrington who will string me up the first chance he gets? Or Elizabeth who won't get her nails wet? Or Will who...who..." Jack stopped and looked at her, wide eyed. "They have Will and Bill."

"Well, what do you intend to do about it?" Anamaria asked. Jack closed his eyes and clenched his teeth.

"We're going traitor hunting!" He growled.

Alteng: Smack Anamaria? That's woman abuse! Well, I guess way back when there was no such thing so...no, Jack can't! I like strong women characters and I think, though Ana is a butthead, she's strong so...Ethaan's ship? I'll let ppl know a little more about that soon. With Norrington? Maybe he will let Jack go but...I don't think so. He's been chasing Jack for 4 years. You'll see at the end though...the ending may not be to pleasing however. Jack'll forgive me. He'll have to, or I'll erase him.

Sirhcevoli: Yeah, I can't figure out how to say it. Let me try though...Sir (as in knight) h (is silent) cev (sssseeevvv) oli (as in rolli-poli-oli). Good try? Anyways, sorry it took so long. I hope you liked it.

Kungfuchick: Yeah, you can forgive me because it's done! Anyways, He didn't kiss him...well...in a way he did.

DragonHunter200: it's okay about the favorite lines. I'll get over it but it'll be hard...sniff. Anyways, More horrifying? That's easy, Gibbs! Who would wanna kiss Gibbs? Especially if you're a guy yourself. Man, how late do you usually stay up? At 3 am I was asleep! Go hit kittens!

Padme17: hey, welcome to my little house of horrors! Thank you. I love cliffies but only when I'm writing them!

Gaze: I didn't know about the cpr thing but I said what the hey and did it. Thanx. Keep r and ring!


	15. Brothers by blood

Hey everyone, I'm back for more and I'm happy but sad at the same time. This story, I regret to say, is almost over and it sux! I hate finishing stories because it makes me feel iky! Oh well, the end has to come and soon it will and I think you'll all be very mad at me...sorry! It's true! Oh, and check out my new joint account with Morgans! We're under SixthYearGryffendor and we have a first together story up so check it out! Please, thanxs!

Chapter fifteen: brothers by blood

"I love you Anamaria." Nicholas coughed, spurting blood from his mouth. They were on the streets of Tortuga, in the dirt outside a pub. Men and women walked by, drinking and diverting their attention, some even stopped to watch but Anamaria didn't notice them, her eyes were on her husband...seeking his eyes for something, anything but the pain of death. "God will look after me and you..." He coughed up more blood and shuddered, turning pale.

Anamaria looked down and saw her hand was covered in his life's force as it steadily seeped from his body in the form of gunshots and stab wounds. Those bastards had really done a number on him. "No," Anamaria sobbed, "You can't leave me Nick...you can't." She pushed harder on her stomach as tears swam in her eyes and more blood poured from her husband. "No...please."

Nicholas smiled slightly and lifted his hand to touch her face. "I will never leave you." He said, running a finger over her trembling lips. "I'll be here...with you...forever." Anamaria shook her head and looked up through angry eyes at the men standing around watching. "Go!" She shouted, "Leave me be!" Some left, muttering about bloody whores but some mearly moved a few steps back and kept watching as though this was a show for their enjoyment.

Kalliea made her way from the pub's stairs and ran over, getting to her hands and knees beside Anamaria, her dress open and exposed to everyone standing there. She placed her hand on Anamaria's shoulder. "Ana...is it, who was..." Anamaria shook her head, not taking her eyes off her husband's face. His eyes were closing.

"No Nick, don't you dare leave me!" She shook him until he opened his eyes again and then looked over at Kalliea with pleading eyes. "Please, fetch the doctor!" She screamed. Kalliea looked down at Nicholas then at Anamaria, a torn look on her face. "What could you possibly be waiting for, go!"

"But, Ana...it's to late." Anamaria growled.

"No, it is not!" She screamed, "Get the doctor!" Kalliea, obviously scared at the expression on Anamaria's face, ran off through the crowd and down the street, disappearing on the next lane. Anamaria watched her go, a hopeless feeling in her chest. She already knew, deep down, that it was hopeless. There was nothing anyone could do.

She looked up at the crowd, pleadingly, watching the faces of the men and women around her without really seeing them. There was one man smoking a pipe in the back behind a woman with golden hair. Smoke curled around his head like a halo. A woman stood just to the side of him with red hair and painted lips and behind her was another man. He stopped only for a moment and then walked on, a sad expression on his face. Pity. Anamaria hated him, how could he pity her? How could he stand there so calmly when Nicholas was dying?

"Help! Someone help!" Anamaria screamed, lifting Nicholas into her arms and ignoring the groan that escaped his lips. "Please, help." The man turned, and looked back at her, his dark eyes intensely calm. Hatefully calm! She pleaded to him. "Please, help my husband...please."

The man looked away slowly, his clean-shaven face held with pity and sorrow at what she knew to be the truth deep down. There was no help to be had, not to her and certainly not to Nicholas. The man turned and walked back, retracing his steps in the Tortugan dirt so painfully slow to Anamaria's frantic mind. It was as if time had suddenly stopped.

He knelt down and moved her hand away; his own taking her place, palm down on her husband's wound. The two men stared at each other and Nicholas smiled and motioned him to come closer. The stranger did so, not to Anamaria's noticing. She was now looking for the doctor and Kalliea to come back. She had no glance to spare for some merchant...pirate...whatever he was.

The stranger nodded and straightened again, looking up at Anamaria through those astonishing eyes yet again. "I'm sorry." He said in such a strong a heartfelt voice that Anamaria could help but turn her attention back to him. "There's nothing anyone can do." Nicholas coughed again and more blood flew from his mouth. The stranger wiped it away with a dirty hand.

"Oh, what do you know?" Anamaria screamed, pushing him away. He managed to keep from falling but only just and stood up, straightening his clothing with a blank expression on his face. Anamaria buried her face in Nicholas's neck and felt his heart slowing. "What do you know?"

The stranger was gone when she looked up again, something that made her both angry and upset. How could he have just left her like that?

"I love you Ana." Nicholas gasped. Anamaria watched his face through watery eyes, watched his blurred eyes drift in and out of focus. "I...I-I-I-I l-l-lo-lo-love y-y-y-ou Ana-Anamaria. M-m-my l-l-love...my wife." And he was gone. His weight slumped down completely in her arms and he no longer breathed. Fighting to stop herself from screaming, Anamaria bit her lip and buried herself in her husband's neck again as people all around began to move on now that he was finally dead.

"Ana?" Kalliea was back. Anamaria allowed herself to be torn away from her lover's body and enveloped by the other woman's embrace as the doctor bent over Nicholas.

"I'm sorry ma'am." He said, sweeping his hat off his head and watching Anamaria cry into Kalliea's shoulder. "He's gone." Anamaria nodded, sobbing. Just a few short hours ago Nicholas and her had been laughing, he'd been talking about buying a boat and leaving the Caribbean. Now he was gone and she'd never see him again.

"Kalliea, Anamaria!" Came a voice from the pub. The girls broke apart and looked to the steps to see Micheal Rothenberg stepping g down them two at a time, his intensely lined face in a mask of rage. "What the hell happened?" Just then he saw Nicholas and the doctor. "Is he dead?" Anamaria couldn;'t speak or move. To nodded or answer would make it to final...to over. Kalliea answered for her.

"Yes sir." She said. "Just now."

"Well, no use mourning, he's dead and crying won't bring him back, get to work." Kalliea looked at Anamaria and began to cry to.

"Sir, please, I beg you, just..." Rothenberg came down the rest of the stirs and grabbed Kalliea by the back of the hair, ripping out a few strands as her thrust her neck back.

"it is very important that you do not finish that sentence." He growled in a hard, cold voice. "Now, I suggest if you both value you're future you will get back to work. I have clients in there that don't just come here for the alcohol, you understand me?" And he shoved Kalliea towards the pub's door. "Now, you're young children, Miss. Martain, do really love food and shelter ...do they not? I suggest you get in there and make the money to give that to them." Kalliea looked fearfully at Anamaria for a moment and then nodded, disappearing into the bustling pub.

"As for you, ex-Mrs. I suggest you get back in there to. I'm sure you're husband wouldn't want you to cry over him when you have a job to do and yourself to support. Now go." He pointed to the door. Anamaria watched the pub for a moment through streaming eyes but didn't move. Finally she shook her head.

"No." She said quietly. Rothenberg lifted an eyebrow and walked forwards a few steps, inclining his head.

"Excuse me, whore? I thought I just heard you say 'no'." Anamaria stood up a little straighter, smoothing out her dress.

"Good, then you can still hear. I said 'no'. I won't work in there another day." Rothenberg smiled and walked towards her shaking his head,. When he was close enough, he drew back and punched her as hard as he could in the face. Anamaria heard a loud crunching sound and staggered backwards into the doctor who caught her and lowered her to the ground, quickly getting gout of the angry Rothenberg's way as he barreled down apon her once again.

"You dirty whore! Screw you!" He got on top of her and punched her again, connecting with Anamaria's already sore cheek. The swelling before now broke open and began to bleed along with her lips. "YOU'LL..." He punched her again, "GET..." SMACK! "IN..." SMACK! "THERE..." SMACK! "AND..." SMACK! "DO WHAT I..." SMACK! "SAY OR..." SMACK! "ELSE!" breathing hard he smacked her again and then got up, straightening his clothing and rubbing his bloody knuckles...her blood, not his. "Get up you dirty whore!" He kicked her in the ribs and Anamaria gasped, rolling over and clutching her stomach. "I'll be waiting." And he left, walking up the stairs and into the pub.

Anamaria watched him go through swollen eyes and moved ever so slowly backwards, crawling like a snake across the ground until she found her husband's body. She curled into it and closed her eyes.

She'd always believed in God...until now. Under her breath, she muttered, "There is no such thing as god and, if there is, I hate him! You hear that! I HATE YOU! YOU RUINED MY LIFE!" and she began to cry. She wouldn't go in that pub again. She'd find a ship, she'd board it. She'd be fearce and feared. N man would ever hit her again. No man would ever feel her love, only her wrath! No man would ever bring her down again. And god? God had left her that day. She was alone.

Anamaria kneaded her forehead with her hands and then pressed them into her eyes until little stars popped here and there in the darkness pressing in on her. That had been so long ago but the memory still came to her as clearly as if it had happened yesterday. She sighed and turned around, taking in the Dauntless and her red-coated crew.

Her thoughts couldn't hold them for long and soon they had swayed back to Nicholas. She missed him so much and the empty space where he had been still hadn't filled. Neither had her loss of God. Nicholas hadn't known she'd worked as a whore and she thanked her lucky stars that he never found out. The shame and humiliation would have killed him. She worked at night when he was asleep because he wad always passed out from a hard day's work or alcohol and never heard her leave or enter.

He'd been a merchant but a poor one, away a lot working across the ocean or somewhere else. Anamaria had begged him to give up his job and take up and new one but he wouldn't, even if it meant them starving. Then, when they lost the baby she'd taken up a whore's life to help support them, just saying the church gave them donations or she found a few pennies on the street.

They'd come for him that night, just outside her pub. She'd heard the scuffles and gone to investigate. She knew the man who had done it, she'd learned his name and would always remember his face to her dying day. His name was Fredrick Marko and the last she had heard, he'd died in some freak accident out at sea. Anamaria grimaced and watched the water struggling to breathe below the ship as it lapped at the hull. Damn, she would have loved to tear him apart one by one.

Behind her, the sounds of talking and footsteps pulled her from her thoughts and she turned to see a very alive but pale Jack Sparrow talking with the Commodore. Strange, Anamaria thought as she watched them cross the deck, a pirate and a navy man, talking civilized to each other and not trying to kill the other. Anamaria smiled. Sometimes, miracles did happen.

Jack sighed and crossed his arms over his chest as he and the commodore did a fourth lap around the ship. Couldn't he squeeze him for information when he was less tired?

"You know." Jack said, interrupting Norrington for the fiftieth time in the last hour. "Let's just admit it, I don't like you and you don't like me." Norrington smiled blandly and stopped, turning to Jack with a raised eyebrow. "I mean...you're like tea."

"You're comparing me to tea?" Norrington asked, trying to keep the annoyance out of his voice at being interrupted. Like usual, it came out more monotonous then it did when he was younger and let his feelings show. "Why, Mr. Sparrow, I never thought of you as that deep...always the opposite, actually." Jack smiled simply and leaned on the Commodore who tried to get away unsuccessfully.

"Well, think about it. You're warm," Where as he was so bloody cold, Norrington thought bemusedly, still listening all the same. "You're plain, sometimes with a touch of excitement, in tea's case lemon." He put up his thumb and forefinger, pushing them so close together you could hardly tell there was a gap there. "And you leave a bad taste in my mouth." Norrington finally was able to remove Jack's arm and brushed off his coat while Jack staggered a few steps back to lean on the railing. "And I really don't like you."

"Oh? And what are you Mr. Sparrow? What drink do you happen to grace?" Jack didn't even need to think about that one.

"Rum." He said. Norrington smiled, not surprised in the least.

"Ah," He sighed. "Let me count the similarities with that one. Number one, you're dark...number two, all pirates like rum and you are a pirate and three, you leave a bad taste in everyone's mouth along with a false sense of security and false promises to help, hey?"

Jack thought about it a moment and shrugged. "I would have settled for alcoholic." He stated simply, his eyes travelling over to Anamaria who stood with her back to him at the railing across the ship. Even as he watched, the young eleven-year-old doctor came forward and engaged her in conversation. Jack didn't care how much he'd been help the other night; he still didn't like him at all. "And also, with the false promises, I was totally telling the truth four years ago." He turned around with a pained look on his face and watched the Commodore, "Are you still mad at me for that?"

"You lied to us." Norrington said, leaning on the railing to. "That's all Sparrow." Jack shook his head.

"No. You didn't listen to me. I told you to go back to the ship because then you could shoot them with you're cannons. You first of all didn't listen to me, and that's your fault. Secondly, how was I supposed to know that they could bloody well walk under the water?" Norrington raised an eyebrow. "I didn't plan them. Those mates of Barbossa are a strange lot and, besides, I helped in the end. It's also you're fault they got away. I'm not the inept one here."

"Done?" Norrington asked as Jack took a deep breath. Jack nodded. "You know about the escape then?" Jack smiled.

"I have my sources. I always thought you were a lousy Commodore." Norringotn raised an eyebrow.

"Really? And you could do better?" Jack sighed.

"I would have killed them." He answered. The commodore snorted.

"And yet you waited ten years to get the Pearl back?" Jack's face clouded over and he looked up the main mast to the navy man in the crow's nest.

"I got my revenge and I did what I had to do." He said. "My crew will always pay so leave them out of it." Norrington sighed and diverted his attention to Elizabeth who was strolling with Gibbs along the far end of the ship. "Now, what the hell do you want from me?"

"I want to know what they're all after and I know you know. I want to stop them and hang them, all of them." He had a strange note in his voice that made Jack turn back to him. Jack finally smiled and again leaned on the Commodore who took it in stride this time.

"Me included?" Jack asked. Norrington didn't answer which made Jack laugh lightly. "Ah, you don't have to keep anything from me mate." He said, examining his fingernails. "I want to kill you to but the question is...why should I help you and what's in it for me?"

"I promise to make it quick and painless." Norringotn said, brushing Jack's hand off his shoulder. "A shot to the head, spare the rope."

"And that's supposed to make me feel better?" Jack asked. Norringotn raised an eyebrow. Jack's mind was going. Maybe it would be better to let the Commodore think that he would go along with it. "So no matter what I do, I have to die?"

"Yes, the moment you are dead all charges will drop but, until that time you are to serve me as your superior under the queen and her country until you're death. Then, at that time you will be released of your transgressions and free to..."

"Be dead?" Jack asked, smiling. The commodore swallowed and nodded, brushing Jack's arm off his shoulder again. Jack nodded and stepped away. "Well, then I guess you won't know anything, will you? Unfortunately for both of us, the map was destroyed in the Pearl along with the letter. Will was taken and all we have is my word and memory to find the bloody treasure." He smiled and staggered backwards, watching the commodore. "Just remember that mate. If I die, all clues to the treasure are gone and you...well, you have no leverage against Barbossa, Mulan and those other bloody cowards." Norrington smiled blandly, turned and walked away towards his cabin leaving Jack standing there in the middle of the deck. He had his life to bargain with now.

Bill and Will sat side by side in their cell, talking about this and that. They'd already exhausted the subject of Will's early life and were now moving on, up closer to the presant. "And that's how I met Jack." He said. Bill smiled and leaned his head back against the inner deck, feeling the trickles of salty water seeping through the cracks in the wood. "He's such a strange man, I never can understand him. Would he have killed me?"

"I doubt it. He has his ways. He always tries to get what he wants with out losing anything he has. He tries to have the world you know." Will nodded and rubbed at his upper arms. It was really cold in here and, now that he was dry, he seemed about as cold as when he had been wet.

"How did you meet him?" He asked, looking over at his father, still hardly daring to believe it was him. Bill sighed.

"I met him when we were younger, although it wasn't a happy meeting. My father and mother had been breaking up for a long time and, when I was five, I found out that my father had cheated on my mother with some woman in the lower class. I went to that house and I banged on the door." He smiled. "I don't know what I expected to do, maybe kill the woman? I don't know. Anyway, Jack's mother came to the door." He smiled again. "She was so beautiful Will, I can't even describe it." Will's brow furrowed and he watched his father closely. Was he saying what Will thought he was saying?

"So...Jack is..." Will started but Bill held up a hand.

"I told her off. I told her she was a whore though, I didn't know what that meant. I just wanted to hurt this beautiful woman for hurting my mother." He smiled and closed his eyes. "Suddenly, a kid maybe...three or so, jumped from the shadows at the side of the door, leaped on me and began strangling me. He beat my head into the sidewalk so hard I actually still have an indent. His mother pulled him off and I got a good look at this scrawny, scraggly little kid." He laughed; making Will crack a smile. "Jack, he took his mother's last name of Sparrow...I kept Turner. We were more friends then brothers after that and I even always called him my friend. Brothers through blood, friends by choice." He opened his eyes and looked at Will, who sat there, shocked. "So no, Jack would never have hurt you. He's all talk really."

"So Jack is...my uncle?" Bill nodded slowly and Will felt his breath catching in his throat. "I never...he never told...how could..." Bill smiled.

"Jack's strange." He said simply, shrugging as much as his wounds would allow. "He knows things, he does things. But, I'm more curious in this woman from you're story, Elizabeth. You never told me her connection with you and why you went to such lengths to save her. Did she give you anything in return?" Will looked up, not only shocked at the fact that Jack was uncle Jack but also that he hadn't even told his father about Elizabeth.

"We got married." He said. Bill beamed at him, pride all over his face. "We're having are first kid in seven months." Bill clapped him on the back and laughed jovially.

"That's my boy!" He exclaimed, "Always like your father, get the girl you save!"

"What do you mean?" Will asked. Bill sighed and squeezed his shoulder.

"I saved your mother...she had a run away horse." He said, "And my first girlfriend, May." Will sat up straighter on the uncomfortable floor. "They were both so beautiful. When I heard you're mother had died...I couldn't come to you because I was supposed to be dead."

"Why didn't you want the curse to be lifted?" Will asked, watching his father closely. Bill sighed.

"It was our penance for disturbing the gold." He said. A shiver ran over him and he looked grimly at Will. "I have to say though, every now and then I feel the gold call to me as if I were still under it's power. When I managed to get free under the water and swim up it was night and the moon, it changed me again. I was neither alive nor dead and I was able to get to land three or four days later. I needed no food nor water nor air. Will, it's a sad way to live." He sighed deeply. "The gold still calls to me and my skin..." He raised a hand to his face. "It gets cold from time to time."

"Ice cold?" Will asked, moving closer to his father. Bill looked up and nodded.

"Yes, every now and then. You see, Will, I think the gold's curse effects all of us because, after all these years of being under it, I am suddenly free and it wants to lure me back."

"The same with Jack then, only he's cold all the time." Bill looked at him blankly.

"Jack?" He asked. "Why would it hurt Jack?"

"Jack took a piece of the gold for a few minutes, so he could beat Barbossa." Will said and then began to explain all the events he could remember. Bill listened and nodded.

"Maybe, it's doing that to Jack because it didn't have him as long as it had us and now it's trying to lure him back to share in our suffering because he didn't have it long enough to suffer." Bill said. Trying to understand what his dad had just said, Will opened his mouth to reply when light streamed down the stairs at the other end and people began to descend.

Will recognized Pintel and Ragettie from the Black Pearl's original crew. They'd gone to jail! Hadn't they? The other was a man Will had never seen before but he looked a lot like Barbossa.

"I see the little whelp and the big ox are up." The strange man said. Will suddenly understood who he was. This had to be Ethan Barbossa. "Tell me, whelp. Is Jack Sparrow dead?"

Will kept quite for a moment. How did he know, the last thing he could remember was Jack sinking below the waves before he'd passed out. For all he knew, Jack was dead. Maybe he wasn't though. If they didn't find his body.

"Yes." Will said, glancing over at his father. "Jack was killed in the explosion on the Pearl. I watched him die, we were in the water. I swam away and I must have passed out because I woke up here. Jack's dead." Ethan nodded and then motioned for Pintel to unlock the door while Ragettie left, moving up the stairs in the other end of the room. Soon, however, he returned with three other large men.

"I know you know which bottle is which Mr. Turner." Ethan said, walking into the cell flanked by two of the large men. The third held Bill down as the two grabbed Will roughly and pulled him to his feet. "I know Jack knew and he wouldn't tell Mulan so," Ethan crossed his arms over his chest. "Which is the right bottle?"

"Go to hell." Will spat. Ethan smiled then wound up and punched Will in the stomach. Will would have sunken to his knees but he was being held up by the large men. This happened again and again until Will was cursing Jack Sparrow's name.

DragonHunter200: I like the 'new favorite lines thingy' name, it's fresh! It's cool. Yeah, Gibbs was probably sleepin' with men...or pigs. Who knows? P.S, I'm staring at you through the screen. Hehehehehehe! The whole red coats thing made laugh so hard man! That was awful and oddly wonderful at the same time. Yeah, Anamaria would hate going to the Mounted Police Parades here in Canada if she hated red fabric...and the colors on the flag! This would be a total prison for her! Yeah, if someone gave me a knife while I slept I'd end up killing myself by accident, I wouldn't be alive to be woken because I'm a bad sleeper. I don't think they had Prozac back then. Do you know if they had drugs like pot and stuff? Probably...I never checked it out. I should....Yeah, we should start the NGE! NO GRADE 11! That sound good? It does to me.

Padme17: Hi. Of course it's a good chapter! What you thought I'd make a bad one? (Sniff) Okay, I'm getting over it...slowly. Keep reading and reviewing.

Tuke of the Pyrenees: Cool name. I like it...it's...cool, I don't know what to say. I like cliffies...they make me feel important.


	16. Alone With Evil

Hello everybody! How's it going? I'm good! Anyways, please check out my joint account with MorganS (no relation) under the pen name SixthYearGryffindor! It'll be gggggrrrreeeeaaaatttt! And we're dispirit for reviewers. Don't laugh, it's not funny! Anyways...please! Oh, and please check out my new oneshot fan fic called Your Name My Son. I know, bad title but I couldn't think of one. It'll be in three parts so please read it. Thanx.

-I don't own POTC!

Chapter sixteen: Alone with Evil

"Ouch." Jack whispered, pulling up his shirt and examining the bandages in the full-length mirror in the corner of his room. They were soaked through with blood again. The eleven-year-old had told him to say when this happened but Jack didn't think so. He could look after himself. Slowly, he peeled away the dirty cloth and let the wound get some air as he pulled off his shirt the rest of the way and then proceeded to change the bandages. When he was done, he sighed, grabbed his old dirty shirt again and put it on. He felt like a walk around the ship.

The night was cool as a light wind blew, tossing the ship ever so slightly. Looking up, Jack found the starry sky and watched it for a while, taking in the brightness around them and filling his lungs with the cool night air, licking the salt from his lips. When he looked down again, he found he wasn't alone on the deck. Navy men watched him as they went about their duties and Anamaria stood near by, at the railing, watching the water below.

"Hello luv." Jack said, joining her. Anamaria made no motion of acknowledgement but simply kept her eyes to the water below. "What's keeping you up so late?"

"Nothing." Anamaria said pensively. Jack nodded and leaned on the railing, making sure to keep his side well away from the wood. "You?"

"I'm sober. I can't function properly. Damn Norrington won't give me anything to drink but tea. He insists that it's my favorite drink." Jack smiled. "I don't know which one I hate more at the moment."

Anamaria made a weird guttural sound and then said, "I never know when you're sober and when you're drunk Jack. You seem about the same to me." Jack smiled.

"Glad you don't see a difference but I'd rather be drunk then sober. Everyone looks better when I'm drunk. Even Norrington."

"Do you believe in God, Jack?" Anamaria asked suddenly. Jack looked over at her and raised his eyebrows. "Well?"

"Not really." Jack answered. "I mean, either way I'm going to hell right? Does it matter if I believe in God or not?" Anamaria shook her head and sighed, leaning heavier on the railing. "Why?"

"Because, he did." Anamaria said. Jack's brow furrowed.

"Who did?"

"My husband." Anamaria said quietly, playing on her hunch. "He believed in God." Some clouded expression came over Jack again and Anamaria had the impression he did that when he didn't want to feel or remember.

"Well, I wouldn't know." Jack said, "I stopped believing in God a long time ago...it's not important anyway."

"Thank you." Anamaria said as Jack turned away. He stopped. "Thank you. You were the only one who stopped. You were the only one who didn't leave me."

"I didn't do anything." Jack said, turning back to her. "I like being thanked for stuff I didn't do but only when it gets me an award of some kind like money. When I didn't do anything though it makes me look like a good guy and that...would be wrong." Anamaria began to cry. Had she been wrong? She watched him for a moment through streaming eyes before breaking down completely.

Jack stood there, stunned and terrified. He could take on cursed pirates but... a crying woman was way to much. His Anamaria, the only woman he knew who could take out five large guys and drink a tankard of rum at the same time, was crying? Not knowing what to do, Jack walked forward a few steps and reached out an arm very slowly, touching Anamaria's arm with one hand and patting her head awkwardly with the other.

"It's okay, luv. You know, this looks really bad. Could you hold it until we get away from all these...people?" That just made Anamaria cry harder. Around them, men stopped what they were doing to watch but when they caught Jack's eye they hurried back to work. "You're lucky you're not on the Pearl."

"I'm sorry." She gulped, trying to get a hold of herself. "It's just I'm s...so frustrated a-a-and I c-cant take this a-any-more!" Jack moved another few steps forward so he was standing close enough that he wasn't leaning and moved his hand from her head to her back.

"Done?" He asked. Anamaria wiped her face on her sleeve and looked up at him through watery eyes.

"I think so. It's just, sometimes I get overloaded." Jack nodded as empathetically as he could and suddenly; she was gone, walking away across the deck. Jack watched her go for a moment and then called out.

"Wait, Luv!" Anamaria didn't stop but kept walking, "Darling! Sunshine! Cry-ey!" Anamaria didn't stop. Damn, he was going to have to say her name! "A-A-Ann..." Anamaria stopped and looked back at him over her shoulder, her eyes shining still in the moonlight. "There, luv. Please stop and listen to me for one second." He made his way across the deck in a few strides and came up right in front of her. "Look, luv. I know we've had our differences in the past few days but, I want you to know that I...I, um..." Anamaria knew better then to think he was apologizing. "I forgive you."

"Thanks Jack." Anamaria said, turning away. "I'll keep that in mind." And she left Jack to curse himself silently for his lack of human emotion.

"Jack?" Elizabeth called out quietly, knocking on the door. There was no answer inside so she slowly and very cautiously pushing the door opened and popped her head inside. "Jack?" There was a candle on the desk beside the bed, illuminating Jack's still form and slowly rising and falling chest. She closed the door and walked inside.

Jack was asleep, his deep steady breathing calming her nerves. She smiled, watching him for a moment and feeling mildly surprised at the fact that he was able to sleep so deeply and still hold a tankard so steadily beside him. Slowly, she leaned over him and eyed the liquid inside. Water, she was sure.

"Can I help you with something?" Jack's voice suddenly muttered, making Elizabeth jump. She stood quickly and backed off a few steps before looking at his face. His eyes were still closed but now she knew he was awake.

"Did...I wake you?" She asked unsteadily. Jack cracked one eye open and looked at her. "Or, were you awake?"

"I was asleep." Jack said monotonously. Elizabeth nodded and pointed to the tankard beside him.

"How do you do that?" Jack looked blankly at her. "How do you sleep and not spill a drop?" Jack closed his eye again and wrinkled his nose.

"Well, habit I guess." He answered finally, spinning the liquid around and around inside the glass with a few flicks of his wrist. The water came close to the rim but not one drop was spilled. "Unfortunately, My taste for water far engreaves me so, I would rather have spilt the whole thing and have been done."

"Spilt it?" Elizabeth asked, reaching out and taking the tankard from Jack. "Why?"

"Well, that little whelp doctor makes me drink it." He said, slowly sitting up. Elizabeth could tell he was in pain but trying hard not to show it. "I'll smack him if he makes me drink more." Elizabeth set the cup down and reached out for Jack's hand, which he didn't give her. Instead, he struggled to his feet, trying not to put any strain on his injured side and began straightening his clothing.

"It's for your own good, Jack." Elizabeth said, lowering her denied hand. "He's a very good doctor." Jack smiled slightly.

"Not good enough." He was moving his left hand up and down his right arm in a quick pace as if trying to warm his cold skin. "I need a drink." Elizabeth smiled.

"I saw Anamaria." She said, handing him his water. Jack scowled but took it and emptied the glass as she kept talking. "She seemed upset last night. She came into our cabin crying." Jack's eyebrows shot up and he threw the tankard on to the bed where a few drops of liquid rolled out onto the blankets. Elizabeth rushed over and picked it up. "I couldn't get an answer out of her. Gibbs said it was simply a lover's spat."

Jack, who had been putting his jacket on, spun around to face her so quick it made Elizabeth yell out in surprise. "It was nothing of the sort unless you count a dead man being a lover still." Elizabeth watched him curiously. "Her husband...something to that effect. She thought I was someone I'm not."

"Oh, I see." Elizabeth said quietly. Jack pulled his coat on the rest of the way and began looking for his boots in the dark room. It sucked only having one candle.

"What does that mean?" He asked. Elizabeth sat on the bed and watched him search under the dresser before she pulled a boot out of the messy blankets on the bed.

"Nothing." She said, searching for the other. "I just didn't know Anamaria was married." She finally found the other one and pulled it out, holding it high enough for Jack to see.

"'Was' being the operative word there, luv." He said, grabbing his boots. "Was married. He died, don't know how though."

"And she thought you were someone else?" Elizabeth asked, watching Jack struggle to put on his boots without hurting his side. "She's known you for a long time Jack, how could she mistake you for someone else?"

"She just did. Some stranger who stopped to help." He straightened up and looked at her. "Why so many questions?" He asked. Elizabeth shrugged but Jack's head suddenly snapped to the door.

He swore, sprung up and rushed to the door but Elizabeth grabbed his arm and stopped him. "No! Just, wait!" Jack pulled his hand from her grasp and tried to turn to face her but lost his balance and slammed into the door. "Oh my! Are you okay?" Jack watched her for a moment before he pushed her away hard enough to make her fall onto the bed. Then he was gone, out the door and up the stairwell. Now it was Elizabeth's turn to swear.

"Jack!" She called, running through the Dauntless's halls and up the stairwell to the deck. "Jack! Wait!" She saw him rushing across the deck to the far side, towards Commodore Norrington.

"Where are they?" He hissed into the Commodore's ear. Norrington raised an eyebrow and continued to look through his telescope at the spot on the horizon. "How many? Who?" Norrington finally lowered it and looked blandly over at Jack before passing the telescope to Gillette.

"There is no one, it's just a merchant ship." Norrington said simply. Jack smiled.

"You didn't think I wouldn't see through Mrs. Turner, Commodore?" He asked. Norrington smiled and looked over Jack's shoulder at Elizabeth who blushed. "Yes, I knew. Now, how many, who and how far away?"

"Who do you think...how many do you think?" Norrington asked. "It's them, Sparrow. They're at the island." Jack's eyes moved from the Commodore to Gillette and he reached out for the telescope. Gillette looked at Norrington, worried but the Commodore nodded and Gillette passed it over.

"Thank you." Jack said pleasantly just to mock them before he raised it and watched the three ships. It was the island! The Fated Parting treasure was there and he was saved. If he could just get away from Norrington and the navy he had a chance.

Will tossed and turned on the straw covered cell's floor, his back a mass of broken skin and bloody rags. He was cold, in pain and angry beyond belief. Bill sat next to him, leaning against the wall in his adopted spot of the cell, his eyes watching his son.

"You'll never get comfortable now." Bill said blandly, eyeing Will's back. Will turned onto his side and tried not to let any of the pain he felt show on his face. "You may as well sit like I am, in pain, and save you're energy."

"How many times has this happened to you?" Will asked. Bill closed his eyes and shivered, counting under his breath. Will could see his mind going through the different scenarios as if it were made of glass.

"A few." He said after a long while. Will snorted. "Jack and I used to get into a lot of trouble, mostly with treasure hunters after we joined up and became a team. When we boarded the Pearl, however, we kind of drifted apart. Then there was the mutiny..." Bill stopped.

"About that." Will said, sitting up slowly and moving as little as possible. "What happened that night? If Jack didn't trust Barbossa, why did he tell him where the treasure was?"

"That's just the thing." Bill said, "He trusted Barbossa to much. Now, though, I doubt he trusts any one very much any more." Bill opened his eyes again and sighed, starring at the ceiling. "Does he?"

"No, not really. He keeps things from people until it's need to know." Will answered. Bill nodded. "Why did he never tell me who he was?"

"Probably for the same reason I never came after you." Bill answered. Will waited but his father stayed silent.

"And...that was..."

"Because, I have more enemies then you can ever dream. If they thought I was dead they wouldn't come after you and, they wouldn't lure Jack into a trap by using you. Everyone thinks Jack is an only child, an orphan with no family." Bill smiled, "He has you and me. That's it. We can't have people using you or I to get him, now can we." He shrugged then winced. "It's more for his protection then ours and besides, the less we know, the less we can tell under interrogation."

"Then, I guess this would be a bad time and place to mention that I know where on the island the treasure is?" Will asked. Bill sat up and took a deep breath. "I won't tell you though, Jack needs it. Not Barbossa."

"Good, don't tell me." Bill smiled. "I'm sure we're really far from Jack now." Will sighed.

"Yeah, I don't know how Jack'll make it out of this one. But he will."

"All right, the plan is to come around the other side of the island, then we'll move inland with my men and watch them for a while, search for Mr. Turner and then leave." Norrington announced, sitting at the table with Anamaria, Gibbs, Gillette, Jack and Elizabeth. Of all the years he was in school, learning to be a British soldier, Norrington had never in a million years, pictured himself sitting here now with them.

"And we get the treasure." Jack threw in, his feet on the clean table. Norrington nodded impatiently. "That is of course an excellent plan Commodore but, it has its holes." Norrington raised an eyebrow.

"I don't hear any of your plans, Mr. Sparrow." He said calmly, leaning back in his chair. "That's one big hole I'd say." Jack sneered.

"You know what my plans would involve. Kill two birds with one very large stone." Norrington smiled, realizing the threat and taking it in stride.

"Very well then Mr. Sparrow, I doubt you're plans will involve a happy ending for me so lets just stick with mine."

"And involve a very unhappy ending for me." Jack smiled. Norrington nodded and stood, walking to the other table in the room where there was a map, drawn by Jack, of all he could remember of the island.

"Are you sure this is correct?" He asked, running a hand down the roughly drawn island. Jack sighed and stood, walking over to the other table more human like then any of them had ever seen him. He seemed to have abandoned his usual drunken swagger for more of a wobble.

"Course I'm sure." He said quietly, swatting Norrington's hand away. "Now, the one that they'll probably go for first is this one." Jack pointed to the altar situated in the rocky cove. "They're on that side and, it looks like the likely one because of its location. Unfortunately, it's not the right one." Norrington raised an eyebrow.

"So, which one is it?" Jack smiled but didn't answer. Instead, he cleared his throat and ran his fingers along the island's beaches, hitting each alter and stopped at them before moving on.

"Do you have any idea what you're getting into Commodore?" Jack asked. Norrington looked up and then over his shoulder at Gillette who was eyeing Jack with an intense look. Finally, he shook his head. "The stories started a long time ago, in a pub of all places." Norrington snorted but stayed silent. "A man named Gregory Matavich. He was killed a few days later in a freak accident, save that for another time, the point is, however...he said he was from the ship, Fated Parting."

"I vaguely know the tale." Norrington said, "It sailed out of Africa..."

"India." Jack corrected, "With a mysterious treasure."

"Ah." Norrington said, looking down at the map again. "And this is where the treasure is I take it?" Jack didn't make a sound nor any motion that he had heard him. He was starring at the map.

"Are you done interrupting?" He asked. Norrington simply smiled so Jack continued. "Now, a man named Markling was the captain. He had very strong ties to the Indian trading areas and so on and so forth, he was an excellent negotiator."

"You mean he was a thief?" Norrington asked darkly. Jack nodded. "You two would have got on swimmingly."

"Yes, well, the point is my dear Commodore, Morliana, the princess, had big trouble with a man named Perdolin. One of the bottles he was asked to hide was to bring back the lost. You could bring back the dead, heal someone and bring them back to full health, bring back love..."

"Love, do pirates love?" Norrington asked. Jack shrugged.

"Markling wasn't a pirate." He answered simply. Over at the table, Anamaria shifted in her seat but Jack ignored her. "Now, Barbossa wants to bring back his brother, Mulan wants to bring back his sister and Marko...he has his own family." Jack glanced at Anamaria who had just leaned forward in her chair, watching him. "He has things to settle. Family reunions all over the place, eh?"

"And you?" Gillette suddenly asked. Jack raised an eyebrow. "What about you?"

"I have my own reasons, none of which concern you." He snapped. Norrington raised an eyebrow. "Now, if you'll excuse me, I have to get ready to leave. Commodore." He inclined his head then swept past them, followed by Anamaria.

Outside the door, the two bumbling idiots from the dock four years ago stood. Jack stopped and all three of them stared at each other. "Hello." He said, "Nice day is it not?" They looked uncomfortable with his presence, satisfying him.

"Jack?" Anamaria's snappy voice suddenly said from behind him. Jack turned and came face to face with her. "When you say Marko, do you mean Fredrick Marko?"

"Why?" Jack asked suspiciously, frowning. Anamaria crossed her arms over her chest and raised an eyebrow making Jack sigh. "Fine, no if you'll get mad and yes if you won't."

"So it is?" Anamaria asked. Jack nodded slowly, saw the look on Anamaria's face and turned the nod into a 'no' shake. "Jack Sparrow, you don't have to protect me!"

"I know luv, but...you're nuts and I can't have you go traipsing off and get yourself killed, leaving me and Gibbs alone with evil!" He gestured at Norrington before grabbing her shoulders and shaking her to get her to look him in the eyes. "Don't go after Marko alone." He warned. Anamaria stared into his eyes and was shocked to see concern there. "Please luv, don't make me beg. This is humiliating enough."

Anamaria pushed him away and then left, walking across the deck and down to the underbelly of the Dauntless. She needed to get ready for murder.

Mcsprout: Hey, cool name! I say that a lot to ppl! Any who...Jack and Ana get together? What makes you think they'll live long enough? DUN DUN DUN! Thank you for your review and keep reading. You won't be disappointed.

DragonHunter200: Awe, that's okay. I admit it was a hard for me even to write because I recently lost someone I know...last month. It was a girl in my class and I was depressed for a long while so I must say that I cried as I read it. (Don't tell). I'm sorry I got you in trouble with your step dad. My dad's like that to though, he explodes at small things. He can have a vacation in heaven. He'll find a nice lake or something. It's okay about the lines, the ones you and you made me blush when you were commenting on my writing. That is such a flattering thing and I love you for it! I want to be a professional writer when I get older and I have my own books planned but am procrastinating on them...oohhpps. That was so mean with Gibbs! Good luck with your pillows tonight.

Alteng: Oh well, I only had thirty minutes to write that scene so...May did die. Yeah, I had an image of my head of Jack smoking weed but I din't know if there was such thing back then. Pintel and Ragettie are cool...they cane get away maybe. Yeah, you kinda gave me the idea with the gold from my first story in your review. Thank you.

Gaze: Thinking...thinking,...Yeah, I screwed up with the dating but that's okay. If you read Harry Potter you'll see his age is screwed up to. Keep reading and reviewing.


	17. The Haunted Song

Hey! I'm back again and sad to say I'm not getting very many reviews anymore. Please, read my other works if you like these, trust me, you won't be disappointed and don't forget to review! I have 5 other stories so...don't forget to review! Man this day is long! Hope yours is all going better then mine and enjoy!

Chapter seventeen- The Haunted Song

Fredrick Marco stepped from the rowboat and on to the sand, taking in the salty air deep into his lungs. The island around him was lush and green; the trees on the edge of the beach dappled the golden grains black and gray. He hadn't been on land in a long while and it felt slightly odd but he adjusted as he made his way past crewmembers and into the shelter of the trees.

He'd always been a cold man, never wanting to get to know to many people, never taking the time or energy to fall in love. Now he sighed and turned, watching through the trunks as the other two ships unloaded supplies. His ship, the unmarked vessel with no name, sat low in the water, glistening brown deck sending diamond water droplets rolling down the sides and back into it's watery bed. He was truly unhappy but soon, perhaps, he'd have a reason to be happy again.

"Sir?" A voice said behind him. Marko spun around and came face to face with a young, curly, brown haired short man, one of his crewmen. How had he gotten behind him like that? "Sir, the other two captains are estimated to be here in three minutes. What exactly is our goal?"

"None of your business Dodrant." Marko hissed, turning back to the ocean view. "Have you seen any sign of that ship that's been following us?"

Dodrant's face took on a quizzical look, Marko could feel it only because his back was turned to the idiot behind him. "I'll take that as a no then."

"Ship sir? There has been no evidence of a ship." Dodrant replied, coming up beside him and watching the men on the beach. "At least, we haven't noticed. Why? Has there been a ship following us?"

"Would I be asking if there wasn't?" Marko roared. Dodrant backed off a few steps, his ears going red and his face going white. (So he looked like the Canadian Flag! Yeah! Sorry, promoting my country! Forgive me...) He smiled embarrassed and shook his head. "It was a large ship. If you look now you may be able to see it."

"I'll tell Frost to look." Dodrant said silently and hurried off. Marko watched him go, sneering. If that man wasn't such an excellent spy and a wonderful thief he'd have killed him already. Another man, Seltis approached, his large bulk blocking all behind him.

"Sir, the plans are laid down." He said simply in a deep rich voice. Marko smiled and rubbed his hands together.

"Good." He said, looking over his shoulder through the trees as a light and silent whispering floated on the breeze to his ears. Female voices were singing a haunted song. "The plans are in action and it's time to set them on our destined course."

Frost climbed irritably up the ropes and rigging, climbing awkwardly into the crow's nest and thanking his lucky stars he wasn't fat. With sweat dripping down his face, he raised the telescope and scanned the horizon.

All he saw was open water, the waves tossing among their aqua stage, sandy beaches and forest mountains wreathed in mist. Other then that there was no sign of a big ship. Sighing irritably, Frost climbed back down the rigging and shoved little Dodrant.

"There was nothing up there!" He growled. "Next time, you go look. This blasted heat almost killed me."

"Yeah yeah." Dodrant whispered as Frost made his way across the deck to help unload a few more supplies. "Damn ugly oaf. Wait until we get what we need and I swear I'll kill you. But..." He smiled and opened his hand, revealing a few coins. "I'll steal from you first."

Will squinted at the sun as sweat trickled down into his eyes and he felt a sharp poke in the side from Bill who sat next to him in the rocking rowboat. "What?" He whispered, watching the rowing men in front of them and the guns on him from the men on the other side.

"You'll burn out your eyes doing that. What did Jack teach you child?" Bill hissed back nodding to the sun. Will sighed and closed his eyes for a moment, thinking about Elizabeth. Was she still alive after that explosion? If so, was Jack still alive and was he taking care of her?

"He taught me to trust no one, help no one...but yourself..."

"Of course." Bill added. Will frowned and continued.

"He taught me that revenge is sweet and you should get it no matter what you do to yourself and who you hurt in the process...threaten anyone you like, pick up strange men and a woman and feed them...steal ships the smart way. Basically, everything I need to know for my first class ticket to hell and also a whole bunch of other things." He squinted at the sun again, the light hurting not just his eyes but the sockets behind them (I'm really sorry DragonHunter200) and sighed, "Nothing about my eyes and the sun though."

Bill smiled and swore under his breath. "He also taught you to be a smart ass." Will grinned back but it was a short-lived joke.

"You two, keep it down." A man yelled, his gun rising. Will tried to hide his smile but he couldn't help but feel like he'd not only connected with his father but his uncle as well.

"You never really did explain to me why you never called Jack you're brother. I mean, I know protection and all but..."

"It's been mostly after the mutiny." Bill said simply. "Well, during the mutiny as well. I had to dissociate my feelings for a while so I could put aside my guilt. I still had it of course." He shook his head as if to clear it. "I had to or I'd go insane and we both would have been dead. This way was better though, don't you think? I mean, everything worked out all right in the end."

Will could feel the ropes cutting into his wrists and frowned. "Does this look alright to you? I'm having a damn good time having my uncle...that I didn't know about mind...come to my house drunk in the middle of a party and drag me on some wild adventure with my wife and unborn baby...have the ship beneath me explode, be put in a dungeon and tortured and now be hostages...I don't know what you classify as a better time then this." Bill smiled as the sarcasm. Will knew it was worthy of Jack and was slightly proud himself.

"Well, we could have burning coals being pressed to our skin." He pointed out. "We could be whipped. We could be pulled apart limb by limb our have our unimportant parts torn off slowly day by day. Or..." Will grimaced.

"Please, no more. That's to much detail." Bill snorted.

"My son, it could always get worse." The angry pirate with the gun coughed and then snorted, pulling mucus up through his nose and into his throat.

"I told you two to shut it. Do I have ta have some persuasion?" He raised the gun. The rest of the ride they went through in silence but in only lasted about three or so minutes. The beach was warm an inviting despite the fact that they were broken and beaten, they were wearing no shirts or boots, they were hungry and thirsty and their hands were tied behind their backs.

Two men grabbed Will and Bill's bonds and led them roughly over to the three captains who stood in a circle in the middle of working men, conversing in low whispers. When they got near enough to hear them, Will's heart skipped a beat at Marko's voice, "...the ship's been following us for a little while. It caught up fairly quickly. I'm sure it was a Navy, it was large."

Navy? Commodore Norrington's Dauntless was large...maybe just maybe it was him? Will glanced over at Bill who was watching Mulan, Marko and Barbossa and didn't seem to have noticed a thing unusual about what they were talking about.

"Are we so privileged as to be invited into this conversation?" He asked blandly. The three captains turned their heads to look at him. "I'm sorry but I didn't bring my formal wear. Will only pants suffice?" Marko smiled blandly, Mulan watched Will but Barbossa was the only one who found his voice. God he looked like his brother.

"Hello Bootstrap." He said pleasantly, looking Bill up and down before walking forward. "How lovely to see you outside in the sun and away from that prison. How long has it been now?"

"To long." Bill growled. "But I'll kill you soon and this whole fiasco will be over."

"Oh, you think so?" He nodded to the man holding Bill and the pirate kicked Bill in the back of the legs sending him onto his knees. Then Barbossa grabbed the back of Will's head by the hair and led him roughly to the tree line. Will didn't try to struggle. It was another thing he'd learned from his uncle. Wait for the opportune moment to act. To act before the opportune moment would be foolish and after would be to late. He had to wait and watch and...

"Listen." Barbossa growled, inclining his head to the dark forest. Will did as he was told and stayed silent, straining to hear over the noise of men on the beach. At first he head nothing and then a sound bean to rise...female voices echoing in the deep dark of the forest.

Their voices were so beautiful yet so haunting. They made him want to run...they sent chills up his spine yet he couldn't move...he felt oddly warmed by them. He wanted to scream and block them out...he wanted to listen to them forever and mute all other sound. This was the song of the female warriors and it permeated this place. Though they were speaking another language, however, Will thought they were calling his name through their song.

"Isn't that the most beautiful and haunting thing you've ever heard?" Barbossa asked quietly, breaking Will from his trance. He shook his head to clear it and then muttered a small sound of non-agreement. "What have you ever heard that was more beautiful?"

"My wife whispering my name in her sleep." Will said, his mind clouding over with thoughts of Elizabeth. If she was dead he had nothing to live for anymore and suddenly, his very own reason for the treasure of the Fated Parting came into play. He knew the right bottle if he could just get to it...if Elizabeth was dead...

"Well then, you won't be over come by their song." Barbossa growled, flinging Will backwards. He hit the sand and rolled over so he was staring at the sky, spitting sand from his mouth. Damn Ethan Barbossa and his little bottles to.

Norrington watched the few rowboats lower into the water. They were on the west side of the island and he and a few of his men were set to embark soon. Sparrow, damn him, had not been forth coming about where the treasure was yet and Norrington was losing his patients very quickly.

"I still think I should be in the first wave." Jack said gruffly from his inconvenient perch on the railing beside the rowboat's dropping place. Many Navy men mumbled at his spot, giving him a wide berth and making their jobs a little more complicated, especially the two men lowering the boat from his side. "Seeing as it's my treasure."

"Actually, Mr. Sparrow, the treasure is property of the queen until I say other wise and you are also property of the queen..."

"Until I'm laid to rest." Jack pointed out, interrupting him. Norrington ignored him and continued as though nothing had happened to cut into his spiel.

"...and there fore under my command. And yes, you are right, you are mine until you are laid to rest. Weather by my hand or another..."

"I'll be dead and you get a promotion." Jack smiled and examined his fingernails, picking at the dirt underneath them with an awkward look on his face. "That sucks." Norrington chose not to reply but simply returned to barking orders.

"Captain." Gibbs breathed, coming up beside Jack, his bearded face red. "Where is the treasure?" Jack raised an eyebrow and blew on his nails before polishing them on his shirt.

"I thought you knew me better then that Mr. Gibbs." Jack said, putting a hurt tone to his voice. "I'm not going to tell you that. Go ask Will if you want to know." He waved his hand absently in the island's direction. Gibbs sighed and tried to hike himself onto the railing to but failed so he took to simply standing there with his back to the rail, arms folded over his chest.

"I'll have to do that Captain." He said, eyeing Norrington, "When we get a chance. Where's Ana?"

"Her cabin I'm sure." Jack answered, looking up and hopping off the railing. "And, seeing as Norrington is leaving first, I'm going to see Anamaria about her little out burst." And he left, hardly noticing the calls of the crewmen behind him or the relieved grumbling at his departure from his unusual perch.

The room was silent when he came to the door and leaned against it, listening. He was unsure as to what to do so simply knocked and leaned against the opposite wall, waiting. After what seemed like an eternity, Anamaria's eyes appeared through the crack between the door and the frame, the light of the candles in the brackets along the corridor wall catching her brown eyes and making them flame.

"Hello luv." Jack said stiffly, moving from his wall and coming towards the door. He leaned against the wood and bent down so their eyes were level, faces only the door's width and a half apart. "What are you doing?"

"Getting ready to go." Anamaria replied coldly. Jack nodded and glanced over her head and into the dark room beyond.

"With all the lights off?" He asked. Anamaria didn't move but her dark eyes seemed to grow darker until she was shooting ice at him.

"What do you want Captain?" She asked. Jack shrugged. "Then go away." She made to close the door but Jack stuck his foot in the jam and held it there, the pain in the sides building as she still strained on the door. She was too strong to be a woman, Jack thought dully. If he didn't know any better he'd say she was a man in disguise.

"Look, darling, my crew is only as strong as it's weakest member. I can't have you screwing this up for me." Anamaria quit straining against his foot and stood impatiently in the doorway, her eyes still boring into his. "Now, if you can't do what you have to do, you will stay here."

"Look, Captain," Jack heard the sarcastic note in her voice and suddenly realized she was right. He wasn't a Captain anymore. His heart sank. That was brutal. "I can do my job and you will need me, so..."

"I don't want your feelings to get in the way of what you'll have to do. If you want to kill Fredrick Marco for what he did to your husband but you can't let that get in the way of..."

"I will kill him Jack." Anamaria said aggressively, kicking his foot out of the door. "As long as I get to kill him." And she slammed the door closed.

Anamaria moved across the room and flopped onto the bed, her hands over her eyes as tears streamed down her cheek. Jack was right, she couldn't let her emotions get in the way of their mission. She rolled over in the dark and huddled into herself, her shoulders shaking with surprised sobs as another thought came to her. How had Jack known about her husband?

Unwanted sobs pulled her into sleep. Unwanted images of her husband came into her mind. Unwanted feelings rose inside her. Unshed tears fell onto her already damp pillow. Again, she dreamed of the stranger.

Norrington walked slowly toward the edge of the trees, his ears pricked for any sign of movement or sound and suddenly, as his Navy senses kicked in and his foot touch grassy floor he heard it. Women were singing in the depths of the trees. It was a sweet haunting melody in a language he couldn't speak and didn't dare try to understand. Then men at his sides paused in fear and waited in silence to the eerie song until he pushed on into the trees.

The darkness around him was punctuated only by pinpricks of light able to squeeze through the branches in the leafy roof above them and the singing grew louder, drawing them to the enchantress's spot. There was a clearing and then entered it, the other voices dying away until only one remained.

There in the middle of the alarmingly bright clearing was a small altar, only waist high and, sitting on top was a red bottle. Norrington signaled his men to stay put and walked slowly forward, his eyes on the small oddly shaped bottle as the signing died off and all he could hear was a voice in his head, a raspy female voice calling his name...purring his name.

He seemed lost, he wanted to stop but couldn't as he came to the altar and stopped, reaching out a hand to touch the bottle. "Commodore!" Norrington snapped out of it and turned, ignoring the female voice in his head to look at his men. They were all ghostly white a thin sheen of perspiration stood out like a beacon on their foreheads. Gillette was standing in the middle of the group but he'd stepped forward in an attempt to get the Commodore's attention. "Careful Sir. We should consult with Sparrow before we touch any of the bottles." Norrington nodded slowly and turned his back on the bottle to join the others.

As they left the clearing, however, Norrington couldn't help but wonder what had happened to him and listen to the haunted song that chased him from the trees.

Hope you liked it! Please, tell me what you think! Your reviews make my day.

Corinne Sparrow: I didn't have a lot of room on my summery when I finished so I had to put as little as possible but thank you for pointing it out, I really never thought about it. Thank you for taking the time to read it and I hope you enjoyed it so far. Please read the rest.

DragonHunter200: Hey, love hearing from you. You had a lot of lines there, it was awesome and when my mom saw it she was like, "WOW!" It was cool. I miss summer to. I think we should get all the teens of the world to band together and get summer re-instated for another few months! I don't take Economics. The only weird ones I take are Psychology, Creative writing and journalism so...Thank you, we all miss her a lot. Good luck with your pillows, I really mean that! Mine usually end up on the floor with my blankets.


	18. seduction

Hey! Well, I took my first driving test and failed! That sucks but it wasn't my fault! Honestly! The guy just didn't like me. My sister's boyfriend had the same guy and he failed him to so it's a little okay! Man, I'm mad! Oh well, I'll get over it! Keep up the reviews! Thanx

Chapter Eighteen: Seduction

Norrington returned to the Dauntless a short time later and looked around for Sparrow but he was missing. Sighing impatiently, Norrington instead made a beeline for Gibbs who was sitting on the steps to the wheel, drinking from a hip flask...water.

"Where is Sparrow?" He waited impatiently as Gibbs took a long draught of water, some spilling from his mouth into his beard. Norrington looked away, disgusted and wondering how this man had ever been allowed on his crew before the turned back, waiting as Gibbs wiped his beard, burped and capped the flask. He simply pointed over Norrington's shoulder. "Thank you." Norrington muttered courteously. He turned around and came face to face with the infamous Jack Sparrow. How had he snuck up on him like that?

This close, Norrington could tell there was something wrong with the pirate. Last time they had been this close, he could remember the eyes being brighter, the skin around his bones being looser and the cold that permeated him...radiating off him was new.

"Mr. Sparrow." Norrington said, taking a step back and hiding his surprise and suspicions. Sparrow grinned and also stepped back, he seemed pleased about something but Norrington wasn't sure at the moment. "What have you been up to?"

"I might ask you the same thing." Jack said quietly, his eyes sliding across the ship to the island. "What did you find?"

Norrington raised an eyebrow. "I asked you first." Sparrow shrugged making Norrington sigh. "How do you know I found anything?"

"Because, you came back to soon for spying on people and you have nothing with you...you saw it, didn't you?" Norrington raised an eyebrow. "The bottle. You saw it." Norrington hesitated then nodded slowly, his heart pounding. Sparrow's smile widened. "Well then, you may actually prove useful...Commodore. Are we going?"

"Yes." Norrington replied. "We are going now." He turned to Gillette. "Fetch some irons for Sparrow, Gibbs and the female pirate." Gillette nodded and hurried off to get said items while Norrington and Sparrow watched each other.

"Is that really necessary?" Sparrow asked in a mock hurt voice. Norrington's turn to smile had come and he did it as blandly as possible but he couldn't hide the amusement in his eyes.

"What do you think?" Norrington asked. Sparrow's smile died on his lips and he allowed Gillette to put the cuffs on his wrists. Norrington held up the large skeleton key that fit the locks, showing Sparrow quite clearly that it was on a chair around his neck before he tucked it under his shirt. After Gibbs and Anamaria were also chained, they were led to a rowboat and lowered into the water. Two Navy men rowed, moving them closer and closer to the island. As they steadily made their way to land, James Norrington couldn't help but feel like life was going to take a very unpleasant turn soon enough.

Anamaria sat beside Jack who had leaned back in the boat, his three-cornered hat low over his eyes. She knew he was awake but she let him rest and let her mind drift off across the water to the island. She watched the rocky shore intensely, her eyes scanning the tree line and slipping through the forest's interior to the other side where Marco waited. Nicholas would want this, she tried to convince herself, and he'd want me to kill his murderer. Deep down, however, Anamaria knew that Nicholas was very disappointed in her.

Anamaria closed her eyes and let herself get swept away in her memories...

"Good morning Ana." Nicholas rolled over and stroked her face making her smile, opening her eyes. Outside their locked window, the streets of Tortuga bustled and the pre-dawn gloom seeped through the glass and into the small one room house. "Good morning Ana."

"Morning?" Anamaria muttered, squinting at the window through tousled hair. "Is it morning?" Nicholas laughed, his deep voice echoing off the walls. "How did you sleep?"

"I'm used to being on a ship but..." He sighed and rolled over, cradling his head in his folded arms. "I'll get used to this...my wife...my love..." He took her hand and kissed it, moving up her arm to her neck and then up her neck to her cheek. In her ear, he whispered, "My beautiful Anamaria."

"How beautiful?" Anamaria asked, needing to hear the words. Nicholas sighed and watched her.

"How handsome am I?" Anamaria surveyed his face with their high cheekbones and his tousled black hair. She giggled and bit her lip. "What?" Nicholas asked, grinning. Anamaria laughed and looked away, towards the locked door. The paint was peeling off the wood and soon they'd need to fix that annoying squeak. "What? Am I not handsome?"

"No..." Nicholas laughed. "I mean 'yes', you are handsome and I will never love another like you." Nicholas's smile faded and he sat up, his bare chest lightning in the shine from the window. Anamaria propped herself up on her elbows, her smile now gone to. "Honey? What's wrong?"

"Nothing...I'm just worried is all." Anamaria's brow furrowed. "Why would you ever think you'd get the chance to love another?" Anamaria shrugged.

"It's an expression Nicholas." She said quietly. "I just said it. Why?"

He leaned down and kissed her, when they broke apart, he said softly, "There will never be the need to love another. You'll never be alone because I'll look after you. We'll be fine. I know we're in a rut right now..." Anamaria squirmed guiltily, her mind slipping to her prostitution. "...but we'll get through this. I don't want you to worry. I have it all sorted out, you'll see. And, when we get over this little bump in the road we'll be able to think about maybe having kids and a family." Anamaria smiled.

"I'd like that." She said, kissing him again. "I'd love that." That night Nicholas died.

"I'm sorry sir, she was adamant and we tried to talk sense into her but she wouldn't listen. She refused to be left behind." Gillette whispered to Norrington as Elizabeth was helped out of the rowboat. Norrington watched her coming up the beach with the doctor in tow and sighed.

Behind him, Jack also watched the scene, smiling. He had to admit, besides the whole rum thing, he liked Elizabeth and he knew she'd make a very hard foe to beat if ever the time came. Sighing, he turned around and addressed Anamaria and Gibbs.

"We have to find a way to get Norrington to take these bloody things off." He lifted his hands to show them the shackles. "Maybe, luv, you could offer him something like..."

"No I will not!" Anamaria hissed loudly, offended at what he was mentioning. Jack stared at her for a moment. "How dare you Jack Sparrow you pig!"

"I was going to say, 'you could offer a plea of some kind. Maybe leverage like that ring that you wear around your neck'." Anamaria felt her face growing hot with embarrassment. "What did you think I was going to say?" There was suggestion in his voice.

"You bloody well know what I was going to say so don't make me explain to you."

"Well, you were obviously thinking about doing it or else you wouldn't have come up with that conclusion." Jack said absently, staring over her head and into the trees behind her. Anamaria was about to reply when Jack held a finger to his lips. "Shh, luv. Listen." He brushed past her, much to her annoyance, and approached the tree line. Norrington, who saw the movement out of the corner of his eye, rushed forward and grabbed the back of Jack's shirt, effectively halting him.

"Wait." He hissed, pulling Jack back a few steps. "Wait until we're all grouped. This is strange." Jack sighed audibly and smiled.

"Commodore, when have you ever known anything in this life to be normal?" He asked. Norrington smiled blandly back and let Jack's shirt go. "Now, please. What am I going to do?" He held up he cuffs. "Honestly."

"Don't wander off." Norrington warned, turning and walking back to the other navymen. With the eyes of Gibbs and Anamaria on him, Jack walked into the cool trees. At first, he thought his ears were deceiving him until he heard singing. He didn't know the tune or the words but, underneath the vocabulary, Jack could distinctly hear them calling his name. Distantly, in some tiny part of his brain, a warning claxon sounded but he pushed it away and pushed on, following the voices.

There was a bottle in a clearing, the glass a glowing red orb, reflecting it's eerie red onto the stone around it. Jack moved forward cautiously but entranced, his heart speeding up as he longed to touch the glass surface. His insides were battling each other. He knew to touch it would be deadly but to refuse would be sorrow. He had to touch it.

Through a haze, Jack extended his hand, wrapping them around the bottle. As his skin made contact with the bottle's surface, the singing around him stopped and every sound, including the chirping of birds and the surf on the shore faded and he was left deaf, holding the bottle up to his eyes, his mind clearing.

"I was lucky you weren't a surface deadly there." He whispered, thinking back to the stories. If it didn't kill him touching the container, then the potion inside surly would. Jack was about to put the bottle back on the crumbling plinth when the outside began to change, the side between his hands taking the shape of a woman's body.

"Jack Sparrow." The echoing voice said inside his mind. Jack would have dropped it in surprise had he the strength to do so. "We meet at last. Who am I? I am Morliana."

"That's impossible." Jack whispered, bringing the bottle closer to his eyes. "She stayed in India. She died in India." The bottle figure's small mouth turned upwards and she laughed lightly.

"Who told you that? Perdolin? The fool. He knew nothing of what I had to go through. How do you know the story?"

"I was told." Jack whispered back, slightly surprised. "Morliana died in India. I'm sure of it."

"Then you are a fool also. I stowed away in the Fated Parting...I loved the captain and I died with the crew in the storm." An image came to Jack's mind of a beautiful woman being tossed around like a twig in fifty-foot high waves, her soaked black hair clinging to her face and neck. She was sinking, sinking beneath the waves and watching the island near by, the one she would never get to, disappear from her grasp. Jack gasped and stepped back, still holding the bottle. "My women warriors, the three who accompanied me also died in the storm. The fourth still haunts the island, neither in form nor spirit. She lingers here." Jack felt a chill run down his spine.

"How does she linger if she is neither spirit nor form?" He asked, using Morliana's own words to try and better understand. How would this warrior be still here but not? It was impossible...then again, Barbossa's men were neither living nor dead so...

"She exists as a spell, a rain, a wind. She is the island and she dose not like men." Morliana's voice was cold and hard but Jack had had enough of her. Mastering himself, he regained control of his body and put the small bottle back it's rocky shelf.

"Jack!" Gibbs was at his shoulder, shaking him. Jack spun around, tripping over a protruding root and knocking into the altar, tipping the bottle off. It hit the ground and rolled away through the grass, coming to a stop at the base of a tree, unscathed. "We've been calling your name for minutes captain."

Now, as Jack looked around, it was hard to imagine that he had missed this many people. The clearing was empty naught thirty seconds ago. "Calling?" Jack asked, startled. Gibbs nodded.

"You were muttering to yourself, staring at the bottle. You reached for it a few times but Norrington stopped you from touching it." Gibbs explained, nodding to Norrington who stood behind Jack. "You seemed to be having a fit or something. We couldn't get you to talk sense." Jack watched the bottle under the tree, the men around it giving it a wide space as though it were diseased. "Are you alright Captain?"

"I'm fine Gibbs." Jack said, drawing himself up to his full height. "But the whelp isn't so, we should go and find him, eh?" Gibbs nodded and together, pirates and navymen pushed on together through the trees.

Will was pushed through the trees, roughly bumping into trunks and tripping over protruding twigs, Mulan's hand on his back. "I can't believe you betrayed Jack." Will hissed over his shoulder. Mulan just laughed.

"Well, it doesn't matter now." Mulan said gruffly, unconcern in his voice. "He's dead isn't he?" Will smiled maliciously.

"Is he really?" Will asked. He could tell, by the feeling of Mulan's hand tense up, that he was suddenly worried.

"You tell me. Is he here now to save you?" Mulan laughed. "No. So, shut it whelp." Will grumbled on his breath and turned his attention to the men in front, leading Bill.

The sun beat down hot and heavy through the trees above, making sweat trickle down Will's face. It was way to hot to be walking around out here, looking for the bottles. They didn't even know which one it was!

The singing around them would have been more effective if Will wasn't in so much pain from all the rough handling. The female voices tugged at the corners of his mind, willing him to slip away to them, consent to be theirs. The songs, though in Indian, were almost calling to him in English, whispering to his half numb brain, "We will free you, we will bring them all back...just touch us William Turner...touch us."

"Does it feel like someone's watching us?" One man who was behind Bill asked. Will's brow furrowed. Yes, it did feel like they were being watched, from all angles. It felt like the island itself was watching them and it was more eerie then the voices.

"Shut up Dawson, you'll scare the girls." Another man replied. The man named Dawson laughed out loud and watched Will for a moment before pushing after Bill and his captors. Will didn't care, there was more important things on his mind like finding a way out of this mess.

To my reviewers:

PussInBootsAndMonkeyzNamedJack: Hey, like the name. Thank you so much and please keep reading. It'll get better, I swear.

DragonHunter200: Man, I love those favorite line thingies. Yeah, I love Canada but, like all countries, it has it's...you know...bad parts but over all I love it! Especially the national colors though I'm not much of a hockey player. Yeah, our money is pretty. That's what my cousins from Texas said to when they saw it. They were asking me who all the prime ministers were on them but I really didn't know. In the United States, isn't your money all one color? The last time I saw it, I was ten or something. I like the pictures on yours though and of course we always have a lot of American pennies. I always have one in my change. But, now they're thinking about making all our money into coins! I thought it was stupid with the ones and twos! Man, our pants would be really heavy! The eye thing? Do I do it on purpose? I'm hurt and offended! (mock sadness) Course I don't! It all just fits! Strangers...dangers...have fun with the pillows!

Gaze: Hey! Another Canadian! I was so happy to find out you were from Canada as well! Outside Toronto? Do you watch Canadian Idol? If so, who did you vote for? The funny thing was I voted for Teresa, Kalan and Jacob. Jacob was my favorite but, of course, he was gone. Kalan was cute and I wanted him to get second and I wanted to have Tereasa third, even though she is from my home town of Saskatoon Saskatchewan! I live outside Saskatoon now but it's only been two years away. I live in a really small town, 60 people or so and go to school in another town because my town doesn't have a school so...I'd love to go to Toronto some day. I hear you had a big storm there just a few days ago with really strong winds. Jack getting respect? Yeah right! I wish! Oh, and the bloodshed...just because you asked for hardly any bloodshed...I won't be very specific but I have already wrote the next two chapters so...some things I won't be able to change. Thanx.

Corinne sparrow: Yeah, my story is pretty long. Some are longer though so...It's good to be determined. I'm like you in that aspect. I'm reading a story in French and I don't know much French. It took me half an hour to read, interpret and understand two lines so...it's a 7 chapter story so far! Yeah, I knew about the one paragraph mix up, other people pointed it out. I was having troubles with the computer that day and I apologies. Sorry again.

I HOPE I DIDN'T FORGET ANYONE! YOU ALL ROCK! THANK YOU SO MUCH!


	19. pleaded negotiations

Hi everyone! Well, I've written about five more chapters so I guess I'm not as close to getting done this story as I thought! Oh well, I'm still having a lot of fun writing it and I really don't want to finish. If I could go on forever with it I would but that's impossibly long so...keep reading and reviewing, I love your reviews!

Chapter nineteen: pleaded negotiations

Will was pushed into a small clearing and roughly halted, his legs kicked out from beneath him so he ended up on his knees. Beside him, Bill had already adopted their new twin positions with ease and watched the proceedings around him as though he were board and not in complete and utter danger.

Will finally got a good look at the crewmembers that the three captains had at their disposal. There was a rough, large, burly crew standing off to the sides, menacing swords flashing in the dim light of the clearing, jeers floating across the sandy grass to them on the light breeze. These were probably Marco's crew because the other two he knew.

The pirates in the middle of the clearing all grouped up and watching everyone around them had joined them on the beach for the party...how many nights ago had that been? Not many but it felt like another lifetime. The Will then and the Will now were two different people and, as he gazed at the other crew he couldn't help but gasp, his preoccupied brain trying to understand the sight before him.

Pintel and Ragetti were struggling with heavy boxes as the remaining ex-crew of the Black Pearl looked on, laughing. Pintel dropped a case under the base of a tree trunk and was knocked over Ragetti who tripped over a protruding root. The other two crews scowled as raucous laughter filled the clearing and even Will, though under dire circumstances, couldn't help but smile.

"Quit fooling around!" Barbossa snapped, his yellow eyes roving the circle of pirates as the mysterious song pounded in their ears. "It's time." This got everyone's attention.

"How are we planning on finding the bottle. There are four and Sparrow was too daft to figure out which. The stories say that they can kill so we have to be sparing." Mulan growled, watching Pintel and Ragetti through narrowed eyes.

"True." Marco replied, his eyes on Will and Bill. Will felt his heart leap into his stomach. He couldn't let them get the bottle but he couldn't have them kill Bill or him for it! He wanted to see Elizabeth again, to hold her and stroke her hair and whisper in her ear. He wanted to some day hold their baby in his arms...would he or she look like him?

"I say we let one of them do it first. If they die, the other will try. If they both die before we reach the right bottle, we take someone else." Barbossa smiled at Pintel who shuddered and stepped back. "Deal?"

"Deal." Mulan said, stepping forward and grabbing a handful of Will's hair. Will hissed as the man yanked back his head and, squinting against the sunlight hitting his face through the swaying palm tree, he saw Mulan smile. "This one can go first. Can't you William?" He yanked him to his feet.

Behind them there was a shuffling sound and then a groan from Bill. Will tried to turn but the pressure on his hair and neck was mounting. "Awe Bill, sit tight. You'll join your son soon enough." Barbossa's voice said in a soft tone that sent chills up and down Will's spine. "Bring him to."

"Please, Mr. Sparrow, let me look at you." Christian said, hurrying behind Jack who, though tied, was still managing to walk quicker then the doctor. "You seemed to have a small break down and I just have to take a look at your pupils."

"My what?" Jack asked over his shoulder. Christian knew that the pirate knew what he was talking about but decided to play along with his bid for stupidity.

"Your pupils, captain. They're the little round black things in your eyes." Jack smiled and looked over his shoulder; almost running into Norrington who had to step aside so the wandering pirate didn't kill him.

"I have what in my eyes? Look, no matter what part of my body it's on, it is my body and there for none of your business..." Jack didn't see where he was going and ran head long into a tree. Sliding down the trunk to sit on the forest floor, Christian took his moment. He seized Jack's face as the pirate still tried to regain his baring and peered into his dark eyes.

"Thank you Mr. Sparrow for being so co-operative." Christian smiled, standing and extending his hand to pull Jack up as well. When the pirate was up and had brushed himself off, Christian turned to the Commodore. "He's fine."

"Told you." Jack muttered, staggering left into a young navy man, clutching his head where he'd hit the tree. "If you'd take these bloody things off me, I'd be fine. Can't walk or anything with my damn hands sown together." Norrington smiled blandly and shook his head, continuing to walk.

"Here..." Christian extended a hand to help Jack but the man growled and wobbled off to catch up the Commodore. Anamaria smiled as Christian and he smiled back revealing the most beautiful smile she'd ever seen...and she knew Jack! "Is he always that stubborn?"

"You don't know the stories of Jack Sparrow?" She asked as they walked slowly together near the back of the group. Christian shrugged.

"Mostly the ones with him dressed as a woman. Those intrigue me." Anamaria laughed lightly. "You have the most...wonderful laugh miss. You should use it more. It's so feminine. You don't hear a laugh quite like it anymore. Mostly people try to stifle it." Anamaria blushed and tried to become interested in the trees but her eyes kept returning to the doctor. He had the greenest, deepest eyes.

"I do to...usually." Anamaria said, shrugging. "I live on a ship with many other men. I have to hide who I truly am." Christian looked at with some sort of pity.

"I'm sorry to hear that." He said. "I love your laugh. It's a shame that the other men neither care to hear it or...am I just assuming they know about it?"

"They don't. I don't laugh." Christian sighed. "And you doctor? What made you come on this venture?"

"Adventure." Christian said plainly, smiling and watching Gibbs. "Pirates. I always wanted to be a pirate...when I was little of course. Now I just wish to study my practice in a small mainland town. Maybe in Britain."

"I don't think it was the light." Anamaria said suddenly, staring hard at his face. "You still look young to me. How old are you?"

"Old enough." Christian said, grinning mischievously at her. "Why? Interested?" Anamaria didn't answer. For once in a long time, she wasn't thinking of Jack. She was to entranced by the young man beside her.

Will was led to the alter, Bill being held back by a few of the stronger members of Marko's crew. Will didn't fight or really retaliate at all because he couldn't think or feel. Damn his brain! It seemed to have completely shut down on him.

The large man untied him with the swipe of his knife and pushed him forward so he smacked into the alter and winced as pain shot through his body. What was he going to do? He'd be dead if he didn't pick up the bottle and he could very well be dead if he did. The singing around him was dying away, weather all around him or just in his mind but the bottle seemed to be calling to him.

"Will...Will...touch me, pick me up. I know you want me." The voice purred in his ear from all around him as the feeling of being watched intensified. As his hand moved to touch the bottle, there was another voice...a male voice. It cried out his name but he only registered it for a second before his hand closed over the smooth surface of the red bottle. Will couldn't feel his body anymore...something was pushing him aside and though he could see through his eyes, he was no longer in control over his actions. A smile crossed his lips and he turned, drawing his sword as the thing possessed him.

But, it wasn't a thing...it was a her. A warrior. And she hated men.

Jack held up a hand to stop the party before he even heard the voices. He could just sense them. Leaning over, he whispered to the Commodore, "They're not to far from here. Just you, my two men, and me. Leave the rest behind." Norrington shook his head. "Fine , bring Gillette then. We'd hate for him to miss out on this." Norrington watched him for a moment before standing and addressing his men, telling them the plan. When he was done, Norrington, Anamaria, Gibbs, Gillette and Jack pushed their way quietly through the trees, moving until they could see and hear the pirates in the clearing.

They got down on their stomachs and shimmied forward until they had a clear view between the many bodies, into the heart of the clearing. Will was there, approaching the alter. Jack watched him intensely. His face was white and he looked like he was about to throw up.

"Undo these." Jack whispered to the Commodore, holding up his wrists to show the shackles. "Please."

"What did you say?" Norrington asked. Jack didn't have time for this! Will was about to touch the bloody bottles and bloody Norrington has to ask bloody stupid questions to which he bloody well knew the answer! Jack huffed impatiently.

"I said the P word now do it!" He extended his hands but the Commodore shook his head.

"No, you are bound..."

"Under the queen and can't be released for a long while...yada yada yada...I know. Please, just let me go! Where am I going to run? Seriously!" Norrington shook his head and turned back to the proceedings. "Look." Jack said in a low and slightly board voice. "I know your no match for me and I know you know that you're no match for me. I also know that you know that I know that you know your no match for me so..." Norrington turned his gaze back to Jack who was getting desperate but tried not to show it. "I know you feel more powerful and balanced if I can't move me hands but, in a fight, you'll need me." Jack indicated the pirates around the clearing and tried not to stare at his old mutinous crew, a few of which were scratching their asses...or other's asses.

"We'll see." Norrington replied, turning back to the clearing. Making up his mind, Jack sprung up and began walking through the trees, around the clearing and to the other side. "Sparrow!" Norrington hissed, not daring to raise his voice lest they be caught. "You'll get us all killed!"

Jack moved from tree to tree, trying to stay quiet and not let the chains rattle to awfully much. It was rather hard but the mixed noise of the females singing and the movements of the crews was sufficient cover Jack found.

He managed to get right behind Bill who was being held captive by two big blokes. Trying to get his attention with out attracting the attention of others was impossible so Jack instead crouched down and watched through a gap between Bill and his captor as Will approached the alter. He was reaching out to touch the bottle!

"Will." Jack whispered, "Don't. Don't touch it!" Will was extending his hands, his fingers were almost around the glass bottle. "Will...don't! Will!"

Will grabbed the bottle and lifted it off the stone plinth. "No! Will!" Jack hadn't meant to scream it but he did. Will slowly turned, bottle in hand and looked around the clearing, his eyes sliding from brown to black, encompassing his whole eyeball. Slightly startled and caught, Jack sprung up as the first of the pirates realized he was there and began their attack. Having no guns or swords, Jack ran. Behind him, the battle had begun.

Next chapter will be danger and despair...

DragonHunter200: Hi again! It's okay about the favorite line thingy...I'll just cry for a while...okay, I'm done. LOL. Nicholas was already dead. He died a while ago, it was her memory. Could you bring yourself to slap Jack? Honest truth man, could you bring yourself to do it? Yeah, I got a new hundred-dollar bill today (they remind the old ones because the stores won't take them now, to easy to make fake copies) and it was so cool! They have holographs now on sides so you can have a rainbow colored 100 and hey have little poems on them under cool pictures. The new one has a satellite and I think it has a picture of the Canadarm. It's really cool and, in the light, you can see the prime minister as a ghost but smaller! It's neat and there's even a bar that says 100 and it feels like velvet kinda...and it has brail. It's neat! Yeah, all those coins are getting pathetic! We have one dollar loonies and two dollar toonies and now...what? I get excited about money.

Alteng: I never thought about a civilized tension between them. It was kinda cool to hear you say that. Yeah, Jack always finds a way to get out of situations. Who do I intend to bring back with the potion? Maybe...I can't say. It's to good and it'll be big! Really BIG! I actually had the idea of the song and the bottles from the sirens so, your on the right track. Norrington knows something? What's Starblazers?

PussInBootsAndMonkeyzNamedJack: Wow, long name. Yep, it's still being updated! And I will not give up on it until I put Fin at the end. I won't try and trick you wither by making it look like I'm done and I'm sorry if I do. I hope you like this story though, please keep reading.

Gaze: You don't watch Canadian Idol? Man, Jacob Hoggard was awesome! If you like Punk Rock alternative, then you'd love him. Another girl? Was it maybe...oh, I can't remember many of them. If you told me what she looked like I'd be able to say who she was. Yeah, I'll have to go to Toronto sometime. Actually, it was on my list of places to go before I die. I think it was Toronto that had that pile up or road block or something, and the one busy highway is really empty. That was today so...I saw it on Canada AM this morning. Have you ever been to Saskatchewan? Saskatoon is great (in some ways) not as big as Toronto though. Morliana is the princess from India who went to the Fated Partings to get away from an evil man named Perdolin. She had these elixirs and when the ship sank she died and her spirit was trapped in one of the bottles. I explained it before but I may not have said it thoroughly enough. Sorry.


	20. and goodbye

Hey everyone!

Chapter twenty: ...and goodbye

Jack reached Norrington and the others quicker then he had ever thought possible and was slightly surprised to see Norrington had already unlocked Anamaria and Gibbs. "Give me your hands Sparrow." Jack extended his cuffs and felt instant relief as his bonds fell to the sandy floor.

"What about a weapon?" Jack asked, rubbing his wrists. Norrington was watching the approaching men over Jack's shoulder.

"You'll have to ask one of them for one." He answered. Jack smiled. Was that supposed to be a joke? The Commodore didn't return the smile but simply drew his own sword.

"Thanks." Jack hissed, turning towards the advancing men. "Thanks a lot."

Will felt his mind slipping; an invisible force seemed to grow in his head. It was almost like two minds were sharing his head and suddenly a voice filled his mind. "Hello Will...and goodbye." It was a female voice. Will had only the time to register this before she was pushing him away, back, into his own body until she had complete control.

"Wait! Let me out!" Will screamed. Blackness was encompassing him, sticking him into a wooden room where there was no escape. His eyes saw the walls; his mind was filled with the images 'she' was seeing.

They weren't really visions, though, in his mind. More like a sense of what was happening...a drawing on a piece of paper. He was watching the other people in the clearing, the other pirates. Some had run off, after another man but the rest had stayed. "Who are you?"

"Me?" The female voice was all around him, like a wind blowing inside him. "I am of no concern...you chose wrong." Will realized she was speaking a different language but he could understand her. God help him, he knew what she was saying.

In his mind, the sense of moving towards another person grew and a strong emotion surged around him. It was hate, hate for the man before him not because he had done any wrong to Will...it was simply because he was a man.

"What are you doing?" Will yelled, moving to one of the walls and running his hand along it. Unlike other wood, it was smooth like silk and flexed gently beneath him. "Where am I?"

"With me." The female voice said. The sense of attack was sudden and quick. Will felt a joy come over him as a sickening realization hit him, drowning out any fear he had. This woman had just snapped the other man's neck as easily as if it had been a twig on a tree. Will felt this body pull the sword from the man's sash as this woman began to kill the others with good, strong strokes.

"With you? What do you mean? Who are you? LET ME OUT!" Will banged on the walls but they simply folded beneath his fist.

"With me, in this body. I am Morliana's right hand warrior. Alinasa."

"Alinasa?" Will asked more gently, felling more satisfaction wash over him. "Alinasa...please, let me go. I beg you please."

"No." Alinasa answered, swiping at another man. Will could feel every cut, every swipe...the sense of blood on his hands consumed him as with his feelings of guilt and utter remorse...none of which Alinasa seemed to have.

Jack ducked and grabbed a member of Mulan's crew around the waist, ramming him into the tree. The man seemed to find himself, however, and brought the blunt end of his sword down into the middle of Jack's back making him drop to the ground. Undeterred, Jack rolled over, away from the down cut of the sword and sprung to his feet, punching the other square in the nose, breaking it. As he howled with pain, Jack grabbed his fallen sword and took off.

He had to get to Will, he need to save him! Anamaria and Christian seemed to have become friends; he watched them near by, fighting side by side. Jack smiled slightly, that man was no man...just a kid. How tragic.

The clearing was ahead, Jack could see it through a break in the trees. Entering it from a point just to the east of where he had been originally, Jack suddenly turned away, sickened. There was death everywhere, parts strewn across the bloody forest floor and Will, standing in the middle of it, black eyes watching Jack from the other side of the clearing.

"Are you hurt?" Jack asked the figure of his friend, knowing full well it wasn't him that resided there anymore. The figure watched him and then shook its head. "Who are you then?"

"Alinasa." Will said. Jack nodded, and looked down at his own shinning sword. It kinda looked small in the midst of a person who had caused such carnage. "You?"

"You should know." Jack answered. "Will knows me."

"Oh, William Turner." Alinasa said, nodding and cleaning her blade off with Will's shirt. Jack was listening to the voice. It sounded so feminine, even coming from Will's throat. It had the creepy feeling that only the pirate treasure of Cortez a few years ago could offer. The sudden thought of Cortez's gold made Jack's throat tighten and the longing increase. "You don't look good Captain Sparrow. Do you need to rest?"

Alinasa raised her blade. Jack smiled and shook his head, walking towards her and slipping on bloody grass. "No." He said, "I'm ready for this." Actually, he had no plan and was just playing for time until he developed one but he didn't want her to know that. "I Will in there?"

"Maybe. But he's buisy at the moment. Trying to escape."

"Ah. And when you kill us all, how do you intend to get off the island?" Will's shoulders shrugged.

"Haven't got that far yet." Jack suddenly realized Will's lips weren't moving! Why hadn't he noticed that? Also, she was speaking a completely different language but he could understand every word. "Scared Captain?"

Suddenly, from behind him, Jack heard the sound of running feet. Eight of Mulan and Ethan's crewmen came dashing out of the trees, swords raised, running for Jack. Jack began to prepare himself but in an instant, Will was in front of him, cutting down the others like nothing. "HE'S MINE!" Will's voice screamed, "LEAVE HIM TO ME!" Jack had this moment to run. He scooted off across the field and was soon engulfed in the cool leaves of the forest again.

"Jack!" Jack spun around, tripping over a tree root and falling. When he'd shaken off his sudden jolt, Bill was standing over him. There was blood running down his face and he was holding his sword tenderly with two broken fingers but, other then that, he was the most wonderful sight Jack had ever seen.

"Bill?" Jack asked trying to hide his surprise...his ecstatic happiness. "Are you alright?"

"Are you?" Bill asked. Jack smiled and raised an eyebrow.

"I asked you first mate." Bill came forward and grabbed Jack then, pulling him in to a brief hug. When they pulled apart, Bill held Jack at arms length and looked him up and down. "That was unexpected."

"Jack!" Elizabeth came through the bushed to the right, closely followed by Christian and Anamaria. "Are you alright? Where's Will?"

"Off killing most of 'em pirates out there." Gibbs joined them just then. There was sweat running down his chubby face but other then that he seemed fine as well. "'Aven't seen the Commodore though. Got separated."

"No big loss." Jack answered, turning back to Bill. "I want you to meet my crew, Gibbs, this is Bill." Bill and Gibbs shook hands.

"I finally get to meet ye, eh?" Gibbs growled, smiling. Bill returned the smile with warmth and then saw Anamaria.

"And the woman, she's..."

"Anamaria." Ana said, extending her hand as well. Bill, instead of shaking it, took it in his own and kissed it gently. "Not luv, or sunshine, or darling..."

"Or anything else. You can call her 'hey you' if you'd like though." Jack said. Anamaria glared at him for a moment before Christian broke the silence.

"I'm Doctor Christian Shanks." He said, shaking Bill's hand. "Pleased to meet you sir."

"Not a pirate I take it." Bill muttered. Christian smiled and shook his head. "Then what are you child?"

"Apparently not a child." Jack muttered back, loud enough for all of them to hear. He and Bill eyed young Christian. "He's with them...you know. We'll make him a pirate yet, mind." Bill nodded with a small smirk. Christian, not used to being scrutinized like this, nodded to Bill again and stepped back behind Gibbs.

"And who is this?" Bill asked, smiling at Elizabeth. Her hair was fly away over her face and she looked more disheveled then Jack had ever seen her but it didn't seem to deter Bill on bit. He took her hand, like Anamaria's, and kissed it. "Hello dear. You would be?"

Jack stood back, watching as Elizabeth pulled her hand away delicately. "Elizabeth Turner."

"You're daughter-in-law." Jack whispered. Bill straightened, looking closely at Elizabeth in a different light. "Nice?"

"Nice." Bill replied. "Well, honey. Have you seen my son around here?"

"He's killing the pirates on the beach at the moment." Came a bland voice from behind them. They all spun around, Bill drawing his sword, to face the Commodore and a few of his men. "It's a slaughter."

"What is he doing here?" Bill growled, advancing on Norrington. "How many navy did you bring Sparrow?" Bill spat Jack's name like poison but it didn't seem to deter the other.

"I needed a distraction." Jack answered making Bill turn back to him. "I needed them...I used them." Norrington raised an eyebrow. "Now, let's go stop Will before it's to late."

To my reviewers:

DragonHunter200: You are back! Yeah! Yes, I see Christian as super hot! Not as hot a JD or Orly...well, maybe he has a good chance though! If you saw him the way I saw him! You'd drool! Yeah, I liked the little love triangle but, you know, jack's a prat and he's bound to lose his love if he doesn't get there soon! Oh, just one sec... "TYSON, IF YOU'RE READING THIS, ASK ME OUT!" Sorry, the guy I like. He likes me to but he's a chicken so...not literally. Yeah, my machine is broken to, them's the breaks eh? Yep, holographic money is cool! I wish the whole bill was holographic though! Not that would be awesome. We have dead prime ministers on ours and the queen on our coins. We don't even live in Britain but the crown still rules us! She visits us sometimes.

Alteng: Yeah, I hate when people take things to seriously. If you ever met me in person I think you'd be terrified by my lack of seriousness...Yeah, I didn't know which to use first, pintel or ragetti so I just drew out of a hat and...vwala! They are in a even bigger mess next chapter and I hope, after next chapter, you all don't hate me.

PussInBootsAndMonkeyzNamedJack: Man, your user name takes a long time to write! Not that I'm complaining! What was sad about it? He got free right? Rejoice, for Jack is free! Be happy, please!

Gaze: Yeah, I like Jack's independent streak. It gets him into so much trouble. Morliana will be back though, you know, later. She's a central character so. Her role won't be as big however. There is, still, the other warrior that you have to keep in mind. She's still around...somewhere. I can't remember short, fat with brown hair so...oh well. Yeah, Jacob should have won but you should check out his band, Hedley. It's awesome. Yeah, Saskatchewan, against all arguments, you can't watch your dog run away for two days and you can't see the Manitoba or Alberta boarder by standing in the middle but those rumors still make me laugh. We have amazing sunsets though! Check them out when you come! Yeah, I plan to move to Australia or New York...both more exciting then Saskatoon or my small town.

Brigitte: Your sick but it made me laugh still. This is not a slash! I don't do that kinda thing! The privates intrigued me...maybe just maybe...with Ana though, not Norrington. LOL


	21. Fight tho the death

Hey, sorry for the lengthy...you know. Any way, man...I thought I was going to be done soon but now I'm not so sure! Oh well, we'll see what happens. Please read and review! Oh, and happy Thanksgiving to all my Canadian reviewers!

Chapter twenty-one: Fight to the death

They made their way to the beach and were startled to see the massacre. At least half of the pirates who had originally come to the island were dead or wounded, lying in they're own blood with Will standing in the middle, alone. Down the beach, the other men ran for the cove to re-group. It was now or never.

"Hello Will." Jack shouted, coming on to the blood red beach with slow and cautious steps. Behind him, the other's followed uneasily, they're eyes fixed on the bloody ground as bile rose in their throats. None of them had ever seen anything like it.

"I think I'm going to be sick." Elizabeth moaned. Jack turned his head and watched her disappear back into the trees, Christian behind her and soon he heard the spatter of vomit hit the ground. Taking in a deep breath, Jack filled his nostrils with the smell of blood and continued, disgusted when he slipped on an ear or had to step over another rotting corpse. Flies hung in the air already, tickling his nose and irritating him. His eyes, though, stayed on Will...Alinasa...whoever.

"Not Will." Alinasa said, using Will again. Jack stopped feet from her, trying to look relaxed while still being completely alert. He had to be ready for anything. There was no telling when or how fast this woman could spring, in a man's body or not.

"Ah yes." Jack said, taking another step forward and dragging his sword in the sand behind him. "Appleasa or something. Tell me, what do you look like? I mean, you, not Will."

"Why do you care?" She asked as Bill was slowly circled Alinasa from behind While Jack tried to distract her. "Are you interested?"

"Maybe." Jack shrugged, his eyes on Will's face. "Are you?" Will's mouth curved into a smile and Jack had the feeling, though he couldn't tell, that Alinasa was sizing him up. "It must have been lonely, being trapped in that bottle for so long."

"It was." Alinasa purred. Will's hand moved up and pushed a lock of brown hair from his face, a smile forming on his lips. Jack tried to remember this was Alinasa flirting with him and not Will but it was so unnaturally disconcerting that he was still startled. "When you arrived on the island, Jack, I felt you right away. I liked you from the moment I saw you."

"Oh yeah?" Jack asked, coming forward another step. Bill was silently getting closer. "And? I know there's a but coming in there somewhere."

"But..." Alinasa's voice had grown soft. "I realized I could never love you. Especially when you try to have me snuck up on." She turned to meet Bill who attacked. Bringing her sword down she knocked his from his hands and did a backhand sprung, flinging herself over Jack's head and landing behind him. He barely had time to turn before Will was on him, wrestling him to the ground. Cold steel came to his throat...it was a dagger.

"Where did you get that?" Jack asked, staring at the hilt. It looked like it was made of some kind of gold. There were birds carved into the hilt. If it wasn't to Jack's throat he probably would have admired the beauty of it.

Bill was coming closer. He drew Jack's eyes for a moment, making Will look over to. "Will, don't make me hurt you." Bill called out, his sword raised in front of him. Will smiled and leaned down, his mouth next to Jack's. Alinasa kissed his ear.

"He'll die to, soon enough, once I dispatch with you of course." Will's voice whispered. When he pulled away, Jack stared up into those pitiless...fathoms deep black eyes with a slight thrill of fear.

"You know Will," He said conversationally, raising his eyebrows, "May I call you Will?" Will's face remained blank, "dispatch is a really big word." Bill lunged then; knocking Will off Jack just as Anamaria joined the fray. With Will and Bill wrestling on the ground, she grabbed Jack and pulled him to his feet. Over by the trees, Jack caught sight of Norrington and his men watching, ready to come in at any moment. Damn Navy! They had to work everything out before they acted on it! That's what made Norrington such an inadequate fighter! He just wasn't spontaneous.

Suddenly, Bill was thrown through the air. He landed on the sand meters away, the water washing over him. Anamaria made to fight but Jack grabbed her arm. "No!" He hissed, indicating Bill who was being continually covered by the waves. "Go help Bill. I have it." He waved the navy men back, to wait until the opportune moment and they obeyed. If he died, it would be one less hanging to do later.

"No!" Anamaria growled, "I can help here!" Jack shook his head. "Jack! You don't have to protect me forever." Jack watched her for a moment, trying not to show her how much love he suddenly felt. It hit him sudden, and with out warning, and took his breath away. Lifting a hand, he ran it down her cheek.

"For once in your life, do what I tell you. Please." Anamaria, hearing the sincerity in his voice, didn't argue but instead took off, trying to help the injured Bill to his feet.

"Shut up and die." Alinasa yelled, lunging, using a downward swipe with the sword. As Jack parried, the dagger came up cutting his cheek deeply. Blood sprayed from the wound following the dagger and Jack stumbled backwards, fighting off another vicious blow from Will's sword.

Elizabeth screamed at the side of the beach. Jack took a quick glance and saw her, Christian and Gibbs watching. Elizabeth made to approach but Anamaria stopped her. Help me with Bill!" she yelled. Jack ducked another swipe from the dagger and leapt backwards as the sword ripped the fabric of his shirt so deep he felt the metal on his skin.

It was Jack's turn to go after Will. He thrust at Will's shoulder but was easily blocked. Turning swiftly, he pulled the sword away and was caught in the side by the dagger. It tore through his flesh and he fell backwards onto his back in the sand. As he watched, Will lifted the dagger and ran his tongue over the bloody blade. He smiled wickedly.

"I'll love drinking the rest sweetheart." Alinasa said sweetly. She began to walk forward again, sword in front of Will, aiming at Jack's throat.

"There won't be a chance...honey." Jack answered. He was slightly shaken now by the fact that he had three wounds and Will's body wasn't even bruised. This woman was good. Better then Jack or Will combined. Uncontiously, he began to crawl backwards across the sand but Will's steps were longer and in a moment he had caught up. Behind him, the navy were fanning out, approaching from all sides...as was Anamaria and Gibbs as Christian and Elizabeth cared for Bill. They were all too far away.

Alinasa lifted the sword and before Jack could react, she was bringing it down. Jack closed his eyes, waiting to feel the sting of death. It didn't come. He opened his eyes and saw Will was still standing there, sword raised. His eyes though, they were brown again...not black but brown with whites and pupils. He looked like he was struggling with what was holding him, his eyes switching from black to brown and back, the sword rising slightly and then falling again.

Norrington suddenly flew past; knocking Will down onto the sand. They struggled with each other, exchanging hard blows, the sword just out of both their reaches, the dagger in the sand just beside them. Will's eyes were black again.

Gibbs grabbed Jack's arm and pulled him up, grabbing his sword and handing it to him while pulling his own. "Thank you mate." Jack muttered, turning to the two grappling shapes in the bloody sand. For once in his life, Jack was wishing the Navy would win. Around them, the navymen were tense, ready to jump in and help when called.

Anamaria came over and ran a hand down Jack's cheek, tracing a line around the deep gash. He winced and pulled his head away. "That'll leave a bad scar." She said quietly.

Suddenly Norrington was flung into the air, hitting Jack. They tumbled backwards onto the sand, a tangle of legs and arms. The Navy had gone into action the moment Norrington had gone flying and he rolled off Jack who moaned in pain as he touched the wound on his side. They both turned and stared as the other men attacked, each being cut down until only Gillette was left. He spun on the spot for a death strike and they all gasped as Will stopped the blade with his bare hands.

"How the hell..." Anamaria whispered. Norrington jumped to his feet to join his second in command as the fresh battle between Will and Gillette started again.

Jack also got up, grabbing Anamaria's arm as she made to join the fight. Jack shook his head, "Let me go Jack." She said fiercely, pushing his hand away. "We have to finish this." She grabbed her sword and walked forward as an injured Bill joined her. Jack turned and saw the dagger in the sand, blade down. His blood stained the yellow grains around it.

Weakly, he fell to the sand and began crawling toward it, his blood making a trail behind him. He tried to ignore Gibbs' cry and Bill's furious yell. Just inches from the dagger, he heard Anamaria scream and turned to see her fly through the air, hitting a tree and sliding to the base. Bill was down, his hand holding his shoulder and Gibbs beside him, blood pouring from a wound on his leg. Norrington and Gillette were feet away; unconscious on the sand and Will...Will was walking to Elizabeth and Christian who between them only had one sword. Did Christian even know which end of the sword was to stab and which was to hold?

Jack abandoned his trek for the dagger and rolled to his feet, grabbing a sword as he went. It didn't matter whose sword it was, all that mattered was stopping Will and, touching his side, he didn't care how anymore.

Will raised his sword and was about to engage in battle with Christian when Jack cried, "Leave him alone mate! Your fights with me, to the death." Will turned glaring at Jack through pitiless eyes, a smile curling his thin lips.

"You'd kill your friend?" Alinasa asked. Jack managed to shrug and glanced at Anamaria who was rising with the help of Bill. She had a large gash across her stomach.

"When he tries to kill me and his father," He motioned to Elizabeth, "And, especially women. I have a real problem with that." Will snorted and Jack was relieved when he left Elizabeth and Christian and walked back to the captain, sword dragging in the sand lazily behind him. Will knew he had the upper hand. Jack was at his mercy and that was a very bad place to be.

Anamaria screamed, a dagger from her boot poised in her hand. She flew at Will but the blacksmith raised a hand and caught her wrist. With a quick twist he broke her arm and Anamaria fell to the sand on her knees, painful tears in her eyes. Will took the dagger. There was murder in his black eyes.

With out even looking, Will flipped the dagger behind him. It hit Elizabeth in the thigh. She screamed and crumpled to the ground, unable to move. Rendered helpless once more. Christian grabbed her and pulled her into his arms, applying pressure on her thigh, his fingers delicately wrapping around the dagger as blood began to spill between his fingers. Through her fearful tears, Jack could hear Christian's soothing voice.

Bill pulled out his gun, a pained look on his tanned face. "Will, stop please!" He yelled. Will laughed and continued to walk towards Jack who tripped over a root and hit the sand hard, face screwed up in pain as he hit the back of his head on a rock. Dizzily, he heard a gun shot and Will jerked. A bloody hole appeared in his leg, just above the knee but he was still coming. Bill looked horrified.

Jack flipped over and scrambled up the beach, only noticing his sword was missing from his hand when Will picked it up. He had no weapon again.

The dagger was in the sand still. He ran to it. Somehow Will had caught up with him and kicked out Jack's legs only three or four steps from the dagger. Jack hit the sand, the grains entering his mouth. He spit them out and flipped onto his back as his sword embedded itself in the sand, hitting Jack's shirtsleeve and ripping it as he moved again to avoid the second sword.

"Quit moving." Alinasa hissed. Jack kicked his leg up as high as it would go and Will fell backwards, his nose bleeding into his mouth. Jack wasn't sure if it was broken or not but at the moment he really didn't care. Reaching far, Jack grasped the dagger and whipped around, the blade cutting into Will's forehead just on the hairline. Blood ran freely down Will's face but he didn't seem to care. Raising his sword again Will brought it down. Jack flipped backwards; grabbing one of the swords still embedded in the sand.

Their swords clanged and he stepped back, words ringing in his ears from long ago, "Good, but how's your footwork?" He asked. Will smiled and Jack crossed his feet, Will copying his movements. Last time it had really been a game, a test between to enemies seeing which was better. Then it had been a tie, Jack hadn't been scared but now...now it was a game of life or death and he knew this game he would lose.

Anamaria was up again; she pulled the second sword from the ground and walked towards Will's back, holding the sword in her good hand, holding her broken one to her chest. Will noticed Jack's eyes and turned, raising his sword. Jack knew that move; he had used it to lock the door in the blacksmith's shop four years ago. He'd throw it, it would embed itself in Anamaria and she'd die. "Ana! Watch out!"

Thoughts raced through Jack's brain. Not Anamaria! Images of her passed his mind, as though the world around him was in slow motion. The day they'd met...her hand cutting across his face...every thought, every feeling, every dream, every wish...his secret desires. Grabbing Will's arm, he pulled him backwards. Will whipped around as they came to the tree line and turned.

Jack's breath was taken away as he hit the tree, but it wasn't just the impact. Will stared into his eyes with his own pure black ones, his blade deep into Jack's gut. There was a loud THUD! As the blade sank into the tree behind him. Will stepped back and Jack instinctively looked down, staring at the blade that had penetrated him just below where Barbossa's had.

Blood seeped down his white shirt and Anamaria's terrified screams echoed in his head as the world spun. Will had killed him.

"NO!" Will screamed, banging on the walls of his 'cell', screaming until his throat was raw. He sank to the floor of his mind, sobbing into his hands. Jack was dead and it was all his fault.

Anamaria stopped as Jack shouted, "Ana, watch out!" Will had his sword in an awkward position. He was going to throw it. Fear flooded through her, she was going to die. The world seemed to move in slow motion. Jack stepped forward and grabbed Will, pulling him backwards...then, Will pushed him into a tree...there was a loud thunk of metal and wood...Will moved away...

"Oh my god!" Anamaria whispered, a swooping sensation in her stomach. The sword! The sword Will had been holding! Anamaria screamed, unbelief in every corner of her mind. Oh my god! Jack, god Jack!

Jack didn't move, his face was clouded with surprise and rage and...fear. Will turned to face her, ripping the blade from Jack's body. The captain hit the ground, blood pooling around him, running in rivers over the sand and then fell face forward to lye motionless at the bottom of the tree. Bill screamed from his and came to stand next to Anamaria, his gun in one hand, his sword in the other. She couldn't imagine the conflict he felt and at the moment she didn't care. Her heart seemed to be ripping apart. Jack was dead and she had never told him that she loved him.

"He's mine!" Anamaria screamed. Elizabeth was crying, the sobs racking her body and streams pouring from her eyes and she buried her head into Christian's shoulder. "He killed Jack! I'll kill him." Bill's head snapped from his son who stood watching her grinning, to Anamaria who shook violently. She felt cold, empty and murderous. The awful things she had said to Jack seemed to tear at her soul. He'd died thinking she hated him, now she had to avenge him...even if she died in the process.

Alinasa laughed harshly. "You love him, don't you?" she looked down at Jack's motionless body and kicked him in the ribs. Anger coursed through Anamaria and she growled. "He died well, I must say. I fought good to even with Will fighting me all the way. He's subsided though." Will touched his forehead where the blood poured into his eyes, "I think he's giving up."

"Wretch!" She screamed. Lunging forward. A minute later the world was spinning as they toppled to the ground, rolling towards the ocean hitting every part of each other they could find. When they stopped, Anamaria grasped his throat and squeezed, cutting off his oxygen. He replied by hitting her on the side of the head. Anamaria fell to the sand and her eyes widened as a fist came at her face.

PLEASE DON'T KILL ME AND NO, IT'S NOT OVER! REMEMBER WHERE THEY ARE AND WHAT THEY CAME TO FIND BEFORE YOU MURDER ME! PLEASE!

TO MY REVEIWERS:

DragonHunter200: I'm glad you liked psycho Will, I had the idea before I even had the story planned or written so, it's been in process a long while. I was a little off though about killing Jack. Please don't hate me, please! And, keep your killer hit kittens to yourself, I beg you. I get the whole "get your butt off the computer" thing to, from my dad though. No, I picture most of my heroes as being completely and utterly hot! My sister says I should dump some hormones but I can't help it, you know? Yeah? I hate to one up you on the money thing but we always get new nickels! Hah! Sorry, I'm a jerk. Our nickels usually have a moose on them and such though but we'll get weird things. I love the USA. I actually am now planning to move to New York so...The US Rules!

PussInBootsAndMonkeyzNamedJack: Yeah, I love Christian! He's hot...in my mind and I'm glad you like him. Bill needs sleep? I can just see that...Bill, honey are you tired? Are you grumpy? It's beddy bye time.

Brigitte: I'm sorry; I saw that as completely different man! It was funny though. I have a sick mind so...I can turn anything into that but I seriously thought that was what you meant! Sorry! LOL!


	22. The way I want it

Hey, sorry about the ungodly delay and leaving you hanging like that! I've just been very busy and all!

Chapter twenty-two: The way I want it

Stinging. Someone was slapping her face, hard. Anamaria opened her eyes to see Gibbs sitting beside her in the sand; his callused face alternating slaps from one cheek to the other, his voice calling her name.

Anamaria sat up and Gibbs smiled grimly at her, blood had stopped flowing from the wound in his leg by a piece of cloth wrapped firmly around it. "How long have I been out?" She asked shakily. Gibbs shrugged and Anamaria searched the beach with her eyes, watching for Will. The beach only held Bill; Elizabeth Christian, the unconscious commodore and Gillette, Gibbs and her and she sighed, leaning back on her good arm.

"Mr. Gibbs, I need your help!" Christian called. Gibbs stood and made his way to Elizabeth and the eldest Turner, who sat beside them in the sand. Blood. There was blood everywhere. Anamaria watched as Gibbs kneeled down next to the pair and ripped off his bandana, handing it to Christian who placed it to Elizabeth's thigh. She grimaced slightly but that was it.

Anamaria's eyes shifted to Jack. He lay on his stomach at the base of the palm tree, it's trunk spattered with blood. Her stomach churned and her eyes filled with tears as she got to her feet slowly and approached the tree and her dead love.

It was impossible, Jack Sparrow, dead? No way, not like this. He was to go down with his ship, fighting the sea and to be remembered forever as a hero, a pirate and a good man. Not killed by one of his best friends.

No, Jack did die a hero. He had saved their lives! She stopped next to him, eyes travelling over the blood soaked ground and suddenly she was on her knees, turning him over and pulling him into her arms. His skin was cold to the touch; his blood flowed over her arms warm and red. She pushed away her queasiness; this was of course not the first time she had seen blood it was just seeing him looking so peaceful...he looked asleep. The only thing was his tanned skin flushed almost white, speckled with blood and a large gash ran down his cheek.

She bowed her head and sank her face into the place between his neck and his shoulder. There she held it, feeling a pulse as if he were alive. He's dead! She thought firmly, dead and never coming back. He was breathing though, she could feel it in his throat and she placed a hand to his stomach. It moved, if only a tiny amount. Pulling her head up she looked into his face.

"Jack!" She screamed, shaking him. "Bill, Gibbs, Liz! Christian!" She turned to look up the beach at her four companions. "He's alive! He's breathing!" Bill, Christian and Gibbs left Elizabeth and ran over, each kneeling on Jack's other side. Gibbs placed a hand on the captain's shoulder. Anamaria smiled and looked up at the older men. He was going to make it after all. She was foolish. How could she have thought anything could kill Jack Sparrow?

Christian placed a hand on Jack's neck, counting under his breath. The beats of his heart! She decided. He was going to make it! Christian looked up grimly. "His wounds are mortal Miss." He said, shaking his head. He lifted Jack's shirt. It was a mess, blood everywhere. "There's nothing I can do. I'm sorry." He sounded it to but Anamaria wasn't going to believe him.

"Come on Jack." She whispered, shaking him slightly. Relief swept through her as he opened his eyes. He looked blankly at her, his eyes dull. "Jack?" She whispered, his eyes moved to her and he smiled weakly.

"Hey luv." He said, his voice going up and down, his breathing raspy. "I seem to be in a little fix, eh?" He winced and moaned in pain as she placed a hand on the wound on his stomach, pressing down to stop to blood flow. Gibbs opened his mouth to say something, probably to tell her it was pointless but Jack beat him to it. "No, darling. It's no good." He took in a shuddering breath and closed his eyes briefly. "I think I'm going to..."

"No, captain." Gibbs said roughly, grabbing his shoulder and squeezing it making Jack open his eyes again. "Yer not going to die, got me?" Jack looked at him and smiled mischievously.

"Any questions you want me to ask the man upstairs Gibbs?" Jack asked mysteriously, an eyebrow quirked. Gibbs didn't smile but watched him grimly.

"Yes, if you do die Jack, tell him to bring you back." Jack smiled blandly.

"That's not a question." He said. His eyes turned to Bill. "Sorry we couldn't have caught up on old times Will, you know how things turn out."

"I'll go get 'Lizabeth." Gibbs cut in. With Christian they got up and moved off up the beach, each looking back as they went.

Bill shook his dark head and smiled sadly. "Ye have nothin' to be sorry for Sparrow. Ye tried and besides, we'll have time later." Jack's smiled faded and he watched his brother sadly.

"Why don't I believe you mate?" Jack asked. Bill sniffed. "I'm sorry for May and..."

"Sush!" Bill hissed. "It's not your fault. You got me? It's not." Jack nodded. Elizabeth had arrived. She managed, with the help of Bill and Gibbs, to kneel down and kiss Jack on the cheek.

"I love you Jack." She sobbed, kissing his forehead, her shoulders shaking. "I don't want you to go."

"And you think I do?" Jack smiled. "Look, Elizabeth..." Elizabeth shook her head and placed a finger on his lips.

"I don't need to hear it." She said, smiling sadly. Jack smiled back.

"If you have a boy, name 'im Jack, okay?" Elizabeth nodded and surpressed another sob. Jack's eyes moved over each of them and rested on Anamaria. The others, taking the hint, left, each knowing that this would be the last time they'd all be together.

He placed a hand on her cheek, only having enough strength to keep it there for a few seconds. "Ana." He whispered. Anamaria's lip trembled. He said her name...

"Yes captain?" She asked. Jack shook his head, eyes closed. Anamaria shook him slightly to make sure he was still with her. "Captain."

"Jack." He said simply. "Jack, I'm not a cap'n anymore, luv." This statement broke her heart and Anamaria placed a finger to his lips.

"You are still the best captain in the Caribbean Jack! Don't you dare forget that." She spoke loudly now, sitting up. How dare he be scared when she was terrified! How dare he lose his faith when hers was long gone! How dare he speak like this when it was so hard for her to speak at all! How dare he give in when she needed him!

"Anamaria, I want you to save Will." He said. "He still is a good kid, just a little confused." Anamaria could believe this was coming from his lips. She made a sound as if to protest but he stopped her. "No, it's not him that killed me. It's the curse Ana; it's always the curse. Please..." Anamaria shook her head, angry tears slipping down her cheeks. "Ana! Promise me!" He said forcefully. Anamaria nodded but Jack still had his eyes closed and didn't see her movements.

"I will." She promised. Jack smiled and nodded. "I will...I will...I will...I promise Jack, I will." Jack didn't say anything. Anamaria ran a hand down his cold cheek. "Jack?" He didn't reply. "Jack?" She shook him but still he didn't respond. "No," She whispered desperately, laying him down in the sand. "No, no, no, no, no, no! Jack Sparrow, open your eyes now!" She checked his pulse, it was slowing. She placed her head on his chest and found his breathing was the same as his heart. Crying she placed her hands on his cheeks and turned his head to face her. Her eyes bored into his, which were still closed. Slowly, his flicked open revealing their chocolate brown. Now was the time to tell him. "Jack, I..."

"I know luv." He whispered so quietly she almost didn't hear. She wouldn't let him get away with saying just that.

"I love you." She finished, "I've always loved you. Every scream, every slap, every curse and threat. I never meant it. I was too afraid I'd fall for you and lose you but I did...Jack." He made a hushing noise, his eyes closing.

"I'm not going anywhere luv." He said simply. His eyes moved to her chest and she looked down to. "I'm there, in your heart, savvy? This is the way I want it." Anamaria screwed up her face, trying not to scream as pain shot through her; not from her broken arm but from the place Jack said he'd always be. She took his hand, closed her eyes and held it to her lips for a second or two then pulled him back into her arms.

"Where you the stranger Jack?" She suddenly asked. "Where you the one who stopped? You helped me?" Jack opened his eyes again. Slowly, he nodded.

Then, under his breath, Jack's voice barely made the word but she still caught it. "North."

"North?" Anamaria asked, leaning down closer. She placed her ear directly over his ear. "What about North Jack?" But Jack didn't answer...and she never would again.

She felt like she was one with him. She felt his last movement, felt his last breath and finally felt his last heart beat. Still she held him long after he'd gone, searching for him in her heart. He'd lied, all that was left was a gaping hole, the place where Jack had been and should be.

Elizabeth sobbed into Christian's arms, Norrington watching her in confusion. "What happened?" He asked, looking around the beach. "Where are the others?"

"Will took off." Bill said quietly, watching Jack and Anamaria. Norrington followed his gaze, is mouth open. "Anamaria's with Jack. It won't be long now."

"Shut up!" Elizabeth cried into Christian's chest, gripping his shirt in tight fists. He rocked back and forth, his chin on the top of her head, trying to calm her. . Jack was going to die because of Will. Will had tried to kill all of them, herself included. The look in his eyes had scarred her. Will hadn't been there at all, it had been someone else...she shivered at the thought and heard Christian's voice in her ear.

"It'll be okay." He said. She could hear the sadness in his voice and knew he felt the same way she did, even though he didn't know Jack as long as she had.

Bill pulled her gently away from Christian and she smiled slightly as she noticed the tear stain on his shoulder. Bill ignored that, however and grabbed her face, shifting it up so he could see her. Elizabeth looked into his weather worn and lined face. He looked just like Will only with deliberate mistakes, how Will would look older.

"Will told me about you." He said quietly, rubbing a tear from her cheek with his thumb. "He loves you so much, you're all he ever talked about." He allowed himself to smile; "I see what he was so in love with." Elizabeth's jaw quivered as she remembered something Jack had once said, _'Elizabeth, it would have never worked between us darling. I'm sorry.' _

"And I love him, it's just..." She couldn't bring herself to say anymore as Anamaria stepped through the trees. There was blood all down her front and on her face and her arm hung uselessly at her side. When Gibbs moved forward she shook her head and sat down against the tree beside Elizabeth's

Quietly, so they almost didn't hear, she said, "We're going to get that elixir."

Here's to my reviewers and anyone who I forget...I'm sorry. Don't kill me.

Manda Rattray/Darktimes: Thanks for the review and you were so flattering, especially when I opened up my email and read "From a huge fan" that made me smile. I showed my mom to and she's happy because this is what I want to do when I get older so...I'm sorry about your computer. This is the one I guessed, through the clues, which I read. Oh, P.S. I looked for you on the Fan fiction website and I couldn't find you.

xkohleyesx: Hi, thanx for the review! Thanks for following my story, it's personally one of my favorites that I've written so far. I'm writing another one...POTC, actually I only have the idea so far so I hope you'll check out that one when it comes out to. Ana and Jack live happily ever after? You'll have to wait and see.

xImmortalx: Hello Beautifully Immortal and Sirhcevol! How's it going? I'm glad to see you again and...you are tricky with your names! Man, I'm confused now. LOL! Please, stay sucked into the story. Thanks again.

forceflow46: All these questions that I have to answer. I have to admit that I've been reading my story over and over again to find all the loose ends I need to tie up and It's incredible, things from the first chapters I have to redo! My mind is spinning! Bring back the Black Pearl? How would that little bottle do that? I don't wait and find out. Thanx for the review man!

DragonHunter200: Yeah, the vomit thing was really sick and the rest was really graphic. I should have said "For ppl with weak stomachs, beware." Slash slash slash...everyone loves slash! Will I bring him back? An artist never reveals her secret. Groovy? Past much? LOL. It's okay about reviewing, it took me dang to long to write! Say hi to the killer hit kittens. Yeah, well I've been living in Saskatchewan for 16 years... I'm kinda used to low standards to.

Gaze: Good luck with your enviro-club! That's a great idea! Yeah, this is one of my favorite chappies as well, minus Jack's untimely death! I was upset by my decision and I had to sleep on it before I actually did it. I love him so much. Yeah! Someone remembers the reason they're on the island!

PussInBootsAndMonkeyzNamedJack: Don't let your head blow up! Yeah, I was sad about the death to but it was essential, and besides, Jack was sick right? He would have wanted it this way, hence this chapter. It's not Will's fault...take away his headache please...thanx.

padme17: Holy hell? Is that even possible? I'm sorry about your tornness...I didn't mean it I swear!


	23. Apparitions

Man! The big 100! I'm so happy, thank you all for your support of my story and I'd like to live to a ripe old age of 150 so, keep the reviews coming! Thanx!

Chapter twenty-three: Apparitions

Leaving Jack, the seven survivors made their way along the beach, Anamaria in the led, making their way in the direction that Will had gone. Blood spattered on the ground near his footsteps making him easy to follow. Soon, however, his path led into the trees and they didn't try to follow him. They'd come to a small stretch of beach where the three enemy ships were anchored.

They'd moved to a cove and were now on the direct south end of the island. They were going to try for the next bottle. Anamaria stopped and turned, ducking behind some fallen trees on a hill over looking the ships, to talk to the others. "Okay. That's the next bottle." She looked at Bill, "I don't think it's the right one."

"From the stories," Bill whispered, peering over the tree trunk to look down at the ships. "I came to understand that it's the North bottle but...I wasn't sure and Will never told me. It was in case I would tell under torture."

"While Jack was..." Anamaria took a deep breath and her heart clenched. "Dying, he told me 'North'. North is the right bottle."

"Well, you want to go get it?" Anamaria turned and looked over the logs to. There was only one crew there. They were gathering on the beach, ships tossing on the green blue water.

"Yes." She whispered. "They'll have sent people there already and we don't know where Will is. He could easily be down at the north bottle...especially if it's the one. He...she, what ever, won't want us getting our hands on it." Anamaria turned to Norrington. "What do you think we should do?"

Norrington looked taken aback at being addressed by her on such matters. After a few seconds, he came to himself. "I believe we should all go together. We know they aren't going to get it. If we get to the bottle on time, then we'll need us all together."

"I don't think I can do it." Elizabeth moaned. She was pale white and looked sick. "I feel really bad." Christian lifted her shirt just then and they all saw the bruises. His hand brushed her stomach and she bit her lip, trying not to cry out.

"I'm sorry Elizabeth." He said quietly, placing a hand on her stomach. "I don't think there's any internal bleeding but..."

"What about the baby?" Elizabeth asked quietly. They all held their breath. "Is it alright?"

"Well...no Mrs. Turner. The baby is definitely dead." Elizabeth nodded, tears in her eyes as watched the sky. Everyone knew she didn't really see it...she had no tears left to cry.

"If she can't go on..." Norrington began, but Elizabeth shook her head.

"No." She whispered, "I have nothing left to live for any more." Anamaria bit her lip and looked back at the men below. It was Jack's old crew...Ethan Barbossa's crew.

"Okay then. Christian, you help Elizabeth. We'll have more injuries before the night and we'll need you." Anamaria tried to hold her tongue against what she really wanted to say to him, but a small part of it got out anyway. "In less there's nothing you can do."

Christian's face lost the little bit of color it had held. "Anamaria...I tried to but..." Anamaria shook her head and stood. They still had to walk down the hill and around the south bottle, through the island and to the north bottle before the other men got there and they had many enemies to deal with.

Leading them back into the trees, they were again plunged into the scary song. After a long while of walking in silence, they came to the heart of the forest. Eyes seemed to be watching them from every direction and Anamaria shivered. The sound of running water was coming from nearby and Anamaria was suddenly reminded of Jack...under a waterfall...but there were no more female voices. Someone...a man, was calling her name. The voice was really familiar and, as they rounded the corner and came to a muddy hill over looking a water fall and pool, Anamaria saw him and smiled.

Norrington walked behind Gillette, his eyes scanning the forest as the feeling of eyes all around him fell onto his body. Occasionally he glanced back at Christian and Elizabeth who were moving slowly, Bill right behind them. He seemed to be their bodyguard.

"Someone's watching us." Elizabeth moaned, letting her head fall onto Christian's shoulder. She looked drawn and weak and Norrington new that she probably wouldn't live through the night. He turned back to the path ahead and heard the sound of a waterfall. Rounding the corner, he gasped, seeing a familiar face.

Bill was in a kind of stupor, his mind on his brother...and his son. He couldn't believe Jack was dead! After the mutiny he'd heard the stories and was so relieved his brother wasn't dead. Now, though...He watched Elizabeth being supported by the young doctor. Everything had gone so wrong. There was a waterfall ahead, he could hear it.

Coming around the corner, he gasped.

Elizabeth and Christian were each in their own worlds. Christian was thinking about all that had happened, all the death he'd seen. He'd have nightmares forever.

"Someone's watching us." Elizabeth moaned, her head falling onto his shoulder. She couldn't believe her baby was dead! Christian shook his head.

"No, that's your imagination." He whispered back. Elizabeth shook her head and he knew she didn't believe him. He had to admit, though, he felt the eyes to. Was Mr. Turner back again? They rounded a corner and saw a waterfall...Gillette swore loudly but they ignored him...each were just as surprised as the others.

Anamaria ignored the others and began to run down the side of the hill, screaming, tears falling down her face. "Jack!" She screamed, slipping in the mud and rolling part way down. Covered in mud, she plunged into the water and began wadding out to the waterfall. "Jack! Oh my god, Jack!" She threw her arms around his neck and hugged him. She closed her eyes, feeling his heart beat against her chest...he was so warm! She pulled away and looked him up and down. He was whole...and fine...alive! "Jack, I love you, I love you so much!" Anamaria kissed him but, the moment her lips touched his he felt different...

Pulling away she was startled to find Nicholas. "Hi Ana." He whispered, smiling. Anamaria backed off, stepping away from him and looking over his shoulder. The others were also in the water but they were talking to thin air...or hugging thin air...What the hell?

"What's..." She turned back to Nicholas and touched his face, running her fingers over his cheeks and down his skin to his lips. "Are you..."

"No, I'm not alive." Nicholas said simply, shrugging. "I'm only able to come back because this island," He gestured around him, "Seems to be a plain between life and death. It's a no man's land. There are no barriers." Anamaria was confused but at the moment she didn't care. She wrapped her arms around him again and took in his scent. She never wanted to let go.

Bill's eyes were fixed on May...his May...she stood there, watching him with her head to the side, small arms wrapped around herself as if she was trying to keep warm. Behind her stood a younger girl with blowing black/brown hair. She looked so much like Jack had...Molly.

"May..." Bill whispered, going over to her and taking her face in his hands. Tears slid down her face. "May...this isn't real."

"Yes. It's very real." May whispered. She pulled away. "I met you're wife." Bill smiled sadly and May returned her smile then turned to look back at Molly, his little sister.

"Molly...Jack..."

"I know." Molly said. "We were there to meet him, mother and I. I was able to come, though. They were not." Molly hugged him tightly.

Norrington grabbed his niece and pulled her into his arms as she played with his powdered wig. She wrinkled her small nose and shook her head, blond curls bouncing about her chubby face. "Laura." He whispered. "Oh my god..." Norrington's military mind couldn't quite comprehend what he was seeing.

"Uncle James, where's my mommy?" Laura asked, looking around the pool. Norrington also looked but only saw the other people with him...they were talking to thin air.

"She's..." Norrington pulled his attention away from the others and ran a hand down his niece's soft face. Had it really been ten years? She should be a teenager by now... "She's in Britain Laura. She's alright."

"You didn't bring her? Why didn't you bring her?" Norrington felt the sting of tears in his eyes. He didn't even try to hide them but let them roll down his cheek. Slowly, with a small hand, Laura wiped them away. "It's okay Uncle James. I'm not sick any more." Laura smiled.

Gillette approached his wife slowly, hardly daring to believe...this couldn't be true. It was impossible! Dorothy was dead! She'd been dead for years! She smiled, her white dress damp to the knees from the lake and she held her arms out to hug him but he came no closer. All he could do was stare. "Honey?"

Gillette flinched at the sound of her voice and then slowly, very slowly approached. He pressed a hand to her forehead and let it slid down her face, his thumb moving across her lips. "Dorothy?" He smiled and then kissed her, holding her close to him.

When they finally pulled away she smiled, "It was a boy. The baby was a boy. Would you like to see him?"

Anamaria held on to Nicholas for a long time. She didn't have the strength to let go. He stroked her hair and finally, after a long time, she heard his voice in her ear. "Jack's here."

Anamaria pulled away and looked up into his eyes, questioningly. What did he mean, Jack's here? Looking around, she only saw the other people, talking or hugging the air. They obviously saw someone she didn't. Gibbs was laughing and chatting merrily with some invisible person...he looked happier then she had ever seen him. Further along was Elizabeth, she was crying openly and wiping away her tears with one hand, talking to an invisible person in front of her and holding an invisible baby in her arms. Furthest into the pool was Christian. He was silent, staring at a space in front of him but he looked happy.

"Ana..." Nicholas called her attention back. Anamaria pulled away and looked up into his eyes. "I love you but this isn't me. Just a shadow of who I was." Anamaria was confused.

"What do you mean?" She asked, her hand resting against his chest. She could feel a heart beat. He had to be real!

"I died so long ago Anamaria." Nicholas answered, sighing. "I'm no more then your memory."

"Then your not here?" Anamaria asked. Nicholas shook his head. "But I still...love you."

"And I love you." Nicholas said. "And I watch you still. And I saw how much you loved Jack." Anamaria looked away, no longer able to look Nicholas in the eyes. Heat crept into her face and, despite all her efforts; she broke down into sobs. He grabbed her and pulled her close again. "I know you love me. But that's a different kind of love now. I want you to be happy and if that means you're happy with Jack..." He trailed away.

"He's dead to!" Anamaria cried, taking in his sent as she sobbed. "I loved him and he's gone! Just like you!" Nicholas rested his chin on the top of her head.

"No. He's not gone." Nicholas said. Anamaria stopped sobbing, silent tears sliding down her face. "You know what you have to do Ana. Now do it."

Will walked circles in his 'cell' as Alinasa pushed her way through the forest. Quietly, he slid down the wall and brought his knees up to his chest, letting his face fall into them. This couldn't be happening, it was impossible. Jack had been alive only one short hour ago.

Tears came to his eyes, stinging at the corners as his face grew hot and his stomach clenched painfully. How was it possible that this had all gone so wrong? How had life gone so wrong?

A sense of coming into another clearing came to him and Will felt the pull of the bottles. There was one, Just a few meters in front of Alinasa...the North bottle...the right bottle. "What are you going to do with it?" Will called out into the echoing silence. He felt Alinasa smile.

"Checking it." She said, her deep voice echoing around him in the tight confines of his mind. "They are coming for it." Will let his head rise and he looked around, trying to pierce the inky black around him. They were tired; he could feel it, seeping into every fiber of his being. They moved past the plinth and into the jungle on the other side. There, Alinasa leaned against a tree, closed her eyes, and rested. She would wake when they came and stop them. No matter what.

To my reviewers:

DragonHunter200: I'm sorry about your hit kitten but that's one less I have to deal with if ever you decide I deserve their wrath! I'm sorry about the roller coaster ride with Jack, I'll make it up you I swear. I'm sorry I made you cry to...I'll go to my room now...but first, I'll finish my replies. Wait! I'm at school! I have no room!

Shadowolf XIII: Hey Taylor, haven't seen you in a while...wait, I saw you last class! Well, I looked for your story like you said and I can't find it/ I'll try again tomorrow! Anyways, see you next class.

padme17: I'm sorry! I truly am! I really didn't want to kill Jack! Honestly, I didn't. Please, keep reading. I'll make up for it.

forceflow46 ): I'm really sorry about how long it's taken and it's not my intention to make you wait. I just have to write it and all...and I don't have internet at home and I have an overbearing principal...sorry, I'm gonna shut up now and hang my head in shame.

Irish-bird: Hi! I'm sorry, I know I was mean...I'm a butt I know it. Please, just keep reading and reviewing. You won't be disappointed.

xImmortalx: You wanna know a secret? I want Jack and Ana to get together also but...it's just my hands decide what I write I have no control over them! That would be a very weird relationship though, I mean...no privacy and one or two of those pirates have to be gay and, if your gay, you'll love Jack, you know? Anyway, enough of that, keep reading and reviewing, I value your input.

Rose Noire le Mort: I like your name, I know a little French so...anyways, to your review...I'm glad to hear that you liked this chapter and that it was 'the best damn chapter ever' that was very touching. Anyways, I'm sorry if it made you sad but...the stories not over yet.

xkohleyesx: Hi, I don't remember if I answered your review last time but I'll just answer it again...I'm to lazy to look so....I'm not going to let anything slip on the Jack and Ana front though, you can probably guess where this is going. Then again, I mean, some people have made it look like one thing was going to happen and then BAM! Through ya for a loop. Anyway, thanx for the review!


	24. Back to life

Hey, sorry it took me so long but school sux right now and my new laptop, the one I saved up for so long...crashed and I lost everything. Stupid thing, if I didn't have a 90-day warranty on it I'd break it! Anyway, here it is, the next chapter.

Chapter twenty-four: Back to life

Leaving the pool had been the hardest thing any of them had ever done. Nobody spoke as they made their way around the bend and up a large hill, through thick palm trees and dying shrubs, the song pounding against their ears. Anamaria again led the way but her footsteps were slower, more deliberate. She didn't trust her feet anymore because all they wanted to do was run back to that pool.

She was so confused, so weak. Jack and Nicholas, one she loved just as the other. Nicholas had died years ago; she'd buried him. Jack...she'd left him on the beach. An overwhelming sense of grief wash over her just then and she fell off the path and into the shrubs. Sitting at the base of a tree, she waited for the others to join her. When they had all sat down, she spoke.

"Was that real? What we saw?" Silence. Complete silence. Everyone looked around at each other, wordless. Was it real or had it been a trick of the island, of the spirits wanting more time? "Well?"

"I got to hold my baby." Elizabeth whispered. She was staring at the grass around her as if entranced by it, a small smile coming on to her lips. "It was a girl...she was so beautiful. She had my mother's eyes and Will's..." Her voice broke for a second but she regained it quickly. "She has Will's hair."

"It was my wife." Gillette suddenly added. Everyone smiled to hear that navy attitude dissolve. He sniffed before continuing. "She died in childbirth." He smiled up at Elizabeth. "I also got to hold my child."

"My brother, John." Christian said silently. "He's the reason I became a doctor all those years ago. We were twins, our mother died having us. He got sick one day, when we were fifteen. He died three months later. I still don't know what killed him. It started with a lump...in his neck." Christian rubbed his own neck, as if he thought he'd find something there.

Gibbs sighed and closed his eyes, remembering. Then he looked up the hill. "Is it over there?" He asked, "The bottle?"

Anamaria let her eyes wander then shrugged. Slowly, she pulled herself to her feet and, leaving the others, she made her way up the rest of the hill and came over the crest. It was the most beautiful thing she had ever seen.

This island was bigger than she had thought. A lone mountain sat in the distance, to the right of the point directly in front of where she stood...where the bottle was. The mountain was wreathed in mist as the ocean lapped at the shore near its base. A forest of palms ran for miles around. Heaven itself could not be more beautiful then what she saw now.

Heading back, Anamaria kneeled down next to Elizabeth and addressed the others. "It looks like another hours walk at least." They looked at her in disbelief. "It's a lot bigger then it looks."

"Well then." Bill stood up and dusted off his cloths. "We should go." He helped Gibbs to his feet but ignored the two Navy men. When Christian and Elizabeth were up, he joined Anamaria at the front of the group. "They have to be a little ways ahead of us...the others." Anamaria shook her head.

"No." She said, pointing to the sun. "We were in that pool two hours." Bill shook his head in disbelief. "I know, it felt like minutes." Bill scanned the trees that stretched away down the hill.

"Where do you think Will is?" Anamaria looked back at the group quickly to make sure they were all following before answering.

"Standing guard over the North bottle. He...she won't want anyone to get it."

After an hour or so the sun was low on the horizon and the palms around them were growing dark. Anamaria leaned against a tree and looked around through the jungle around them, trying to get her barring. They should be there by now! "I think we took a wrong turn." She looked back at the others. Elizabeth was ashen white by now, her skin prickled in a fine sheen of sweat. She leaned against the doctor as though clinging to a raft in tossing waves. "I want you, Elizabeth, to stay here with Gibbs, Gillette and Christian." She looked over at Norrington and Bill. "You come with me. We'll find them." They nodded.

The trees were getting so dark. Anamaria knew they must have only two or so hours left of light before they would be pitched into total blackness. They walked on into the bush and Norrington was just proposing they go back to the others when Bill held up a hand.

There was talking, just off to their left and light...the light of a fire. It was Marko's crew, Anamaria was sure of it, and they were setting up camp. Looking over at Norrington, Anamaria gestured to them and began slinking along, trying to see.

There was a man ahead. Anamaria stopped and peered around the tree to get a better look. He was taking a piss, letting out a long moan of pleasure and relief. Anamaria waited until he was done and had gone back to the others before addressing Bill and the Commodore.

"They seem pretty confident." She whispered, jerking her thumb at the men around the fire behind her. "They obviously don't think we've come already."

"Or maybe they already have the bottle and are celebrating." Bill pointed out. Anamaria had to admit it was true but she wouldn't let herself nod. Instead she shrugged.

"Stay here, watch them. I'm going to sneak around, see if I can find anything." Before either of the men could protest, Anamaria slipped off into the gathering darkness. The trees were thick and it was hard not to make any sound. She was sure she knew what direction she was going in now, and slipped off around the camp, occasionally looking through the gaps to see the men on the other side.

They were a tough lot, with large muscles and chiseled faces. She wouldn't want to run into them on a cold night in Tortuga, that was true. They seemed like they hadn't seen any action in a while.

They were quiet, talking in hushed voices but that, and the singing, was enough to drowned out her footsteps as she crunched through thick under brush. She was just making her way off into the woods towards the beach when she saw him.

Marko, Fredrick Marko, sitting right there. Anamaria froze and watched him, her hand gripping the hilt of her sword tightly. Would it be worth it to rush in there and...and what? Get killed before she could save Jack? Was she insane?

Leaving behind her murderous impulse, Anamaria turned her back on the group and walked on, another weight weighing down her already leaden stomach.

Grant and Danner pushed their way through the trees, large muscled arms carelessly moving aside branches. Marko had sent out two scouts in all four directions to search for the bottle. That had been ten minutes ago and, after the battle and the long walk they were getting pissed off.

"This is worthless." Danner snapped, picking up a stick and breaking it into small bits. "Why couldn't we just go back?" Grant rolled his eyes.

"We could easily go back and explain to Captain Marko why we didn't find his precious bottle. You'll be flogged for sure." He snapped a branch right off a small tree. "We're going to find this damn thing soon."

"Yeah, right after we find Davy Jones." Danner muttered. "Just shut up and let's find this bottle. Why would some bottle be worth all our lives? Especially with that mad kid on the loose."

"Well, he's gone now." Grant answered, pushing through a particularly dense bit of shrub. "It has to be important, what ever it is...I HATE THIS DAMN SINGING!"

The song, however, was growing louder. Sighing, they continued to push through the trees and suddenly, came into a dimly lit clearing. There, in the middle of the clearing, was a red bottle, filled from bottom to cork in a clear liquid. The singing had died.

"Finally." Danner muttered, staring at the bottle. "That's it." Grant nodded and looked around. They seemed to be alone but he could still feel eyes on him...and a presence. "Let's grab it and go." He made to go forward before Grant through out and arm and caught him in the chest.

"No, you saw what happened to the boy." He growled. "We have to be careful." Starting forward, they move cautiously. A voice began to fill their heads, guiding their footsteps as a tingling came over them.

Suddenly...a dark shadow appeared.

Anamaria heard screams. Unearthly screams just ahead of her. They were male and horrifying. Moving quicker, she broke into a jog and came to the edge of another clearing. There was one man, on the ground, screaming and grabbing his face where ragged flesh fell between his fingers.

Anamaria stood there in horror, watching from the safety of the tree line as Alinasa spun in her borrowed body, fighting with the other man from Marko's crew. As they disappeared into the trees and the clanging swords faded, Anamaria rushed out into the clearing.

The plinth! It was just ahead of her! She jumped over the man on the ground, ignoring his pleading and grabbed the red bottle. There was a slight tingling in her fingers that was moving up her arms and into her neck but she hardly felt it. Going to jump over the fallen pirate a second time, he managed to grab her leg.

Falling, Anamaria's hands slipped off the bottle and it bounced away through the knee-high grass and rolled away. Screaming, she flipped onto her back and began kicking at the pirate holding her ankle tightly. "Let me go!" Anamaria kicked again, at his face. Blood splattered up her leg, hot and red, running in droplets down her skin. But, he'd let go.

Springing up, she ran forward and searched the grass, looking for the bottle. It was hidden! She had to find it because Will was coming back. The swordplay in the woods had stopped...he'd be back any minute.

Now she was getting desperate. Her heart was pounding so hard, it should have been coming out through her chest and her eyes were screwing up in fear. Blindly, she groped through the tall grass for the bottle and her fingers closed over it. Smiling, she jumped to her feet just as Will came through the bushes.

Before he could close the gap between them, Anamaria had reached the trees and ran, flat out. Marko's crew, who had heard the scream, were also coming and they met up with Will in the clearing. Ducking, Anamaria watched as a few of the men rushed past but they were all intent on Will.

Taking off, Anamaria made her way deeper into the woods and back towards the others as screams filled the air behind her. She reached Bill and Norrington just as Will showed up.

There was blood from his forehead to his feet but they all knew it wasn't his. "Do you have the bottle?" Bill asked as they backed away from the young man. Anamaria held it up to show him and Will's eyes widened.

"That's mine." Alinasa said mystically, pointing at it. Those black eyes...they were so chilling. "Give it to me."

"No." Anamaria said coldly, pulling the bottle closer to her chest. Will began making threatening advances towards her. "Make your way back to Elizabeth. Bring her here. Maybe she can talk some sense into him." Bill looked at her uneasily. "Go, take the commodore with you."

Slowly, they inched away and then broke into a run, taking off through the trees with more noise then Anamaria thought was necessary. Looking back at Will, Anamaria shifted her stance and continued to walk backwards. "Okay, explain to me again. Who the bloody hell are you?"

Will's face was blank for a moment and he stopped, staring at Anamaria for a moment before continuing. "Alinasa." The voice said, though Will's lips weren't moving. "Guard for princess Morliana of India."

Anamaria gave out a small short laugh. "Oh yeah?" She cried, flinging out her arms. "Look around you! You're not in India anymore! You're not even in a female body anymore. You are nothing, a spirit! Not even that...your gone, a waste and we want Will Turner back! His wife wants him back...Jack wanted him back."

Will looked up at heard his wife mentioned but it was the mention of Jack that made him fight. He attacked the walls, using his mind to try and move her out of him, to move her away...get himself back in control...back at the wheel.

Anamaria could see the internal struggle inside those black eyes. She continued to play for time. She hoped, prayed, that Bill and the others would be back soon. They had to save her...to come and help her.

"Yes, Will! Jack, he's dead and this," She held up the bottle. "This is the only way to save him." Just then Bill came into the clearing, carrying Elizabeth in his arms, the others following behind. They looked uneasy at the sight of Will.

Bill carefully set Elizabeth down and she moved forward slowly, reaching out her hand towards Will. "Please Will, please..." Tears fell slowly down her face. "Please, come back to..."

"I am not Will." Alinasa said. "I am..."

Elizabeth shook her head. She was so close to him now that, if Will had chose to swing, Elizabeth would have been dead. Instead, Will stood there watching her and Anamaria suddenly realized that there was no way Alinasa was solely in control anymore.

"Will. Please, look at yourself. Look what you've done and who you've hurt." She began to cry hard, her shoulders shaking badly. "Our baby..."

"I AM NOT WILL!" He raised the sword high above her head and was about to bring it down when there was a loud shot that made them all jump. A hole appeared in Will's chest, right beside his heart. He looked down in surprise and then fell backwards, knocking into a tree and sliding down the trunk to sit at the base. Elizabeth screamed and tried to rush forward but Bill grabbed her and pulled her back. Looking back, Anamaria stared at Christian who still had the gun raised and looked completely horrified at what he had done.

"Oh my god...oh my god..." Christian whispered. Gillette came up beside him and placed a hand on his, lowering the gun. Anamaria, however, walked over to the dying man. She stood above him for a while before kicking the sword away and kneeling down.

"Will?" Alinasa laughed harshly. Looking over, Anamaria called to Elizabeth. "Come here. Save your husband." Elizabeth pulled away from Bill and walked stiffly towards them, reaching out and taking the bottle from Anamaria.

Elizabeth couched next to Anamaria and uncorked the bottle, letting her hand hover over his wound. "I want my husband back, whole and healthy." Before she could tip the bottle, though, Will's hand shot out and wrapped around her throat. Choking, Elizabeth struggled, her hand moving enough to allow a few drops fall out of the bottle and drip onto his chest. There was a hissing sound and Will's black eyes rolled back into his head as his body began to convulse violently as his hand dropped from her neck. It seemed to last forever but, in reality, it was only a few seconds.

When Will opened his eyes, they were brown and clear...they were his again. Elizabeth touched his shoulder gently and leaned over him cautiously. "Will?" She whispered. Will stared at her for a moment and the smiled. Reaching up, he grabbed the back of her head and pulled her down, meeting her lips with his.

When he pulled away again, Elizabeth began to cry, tears of joy trickling down her face. "Elizabeth? Elizabeth, it's all right. It's all right, please don't cry...please..." He wiped away her tears and sat up, pulling her into his arms. "Shh, it's okay."

He studied the people around him, counting. They could all see he knew what had happened...and who was missing. Looking grim, his eyes moved over to Norrington. "Commodore. What are you doing here?" Norrington walked slowly forward, right behind Christian who was now leaning next to Will, peering into his eyes and checking over his wounds which, mysteriously, were now missing.

"I came to rescue you." He said monotonously. "I got more then I bargained for, however."

"Will." Elizabeth whispered. "Will, it's Jack." Will closed his eyes and grabbed her again, nodding. He took in the scent of her hair and smiled to feel her close to him. "And the baby."

"But now we have this." Anamaria picked up the discarded bottle, holding it up for them to see. "We can bring them back. We can bring them all back."

To my reviewers:

Forceflow46/mmm Thanx for the reviews and all the names, my head is spinning. I'm sorry it took so long, it wouldn't have if I had internet at home and not at school! Anyway, I'm sorry you had to check so often. I hope this makes up for it. Yeah, my principal is a wiener. But he was willing to get a Mohawk for promotion of the school so it's okay, somewhat. Will killed a lot of people, mostly now with this chapter, Marko's crew and Norrington's men along with a lot of the pirates from the other 2 ships.

DragonHunter200: I'm sorry it took so long but I was so busy. I'm sorry if I made you to sad but, no promises, you should be happy sometime, weather I bring Jack back or not. It's okay about the favorite line thingy; I know how hard that would be. Get going on the rum man, I want the rum!

Alteng: Hey, I'm in the process of reading your story, Harry Potter and the Holy Relic of Vecna but I'm only part way into chapter 1 and not able to review yet. It's good so far so look for a review from me in the near future. Yeah, with Norrington and Elizabeth I kinda have the thing where he's keeping his space from her because he doesn't want to step on Will's toes or hurt himself again and I really like Christian. Yeah, I hated Jack's death but it had to happen for the story...you'll see why later. Keep reading and reviewing.

Mr. Nozzers: Hey, how's it going? I wasn't sure that I should have chapter 23, with the spirits and all, I thought it was kinda weird and I was thinking of putting it in the sequel I'm writing to this story but I didn't and I hope it's not to outta the way. Thanx.

Padme17: Most interesting of any you've read? I'm flattered! Truly! How many times do I have to apologies about Jack? Okay, a lot I know...I'm sorry again. It was selfish of me to take him but...I'll make it up to you, I promise!

Gaze: What's wrong with the club? If I was there I'd join. I don't know if everything resolved nicely, it was kinda choppy for me but I'll have to get over it. Maybe I'll re-write the chapter later. I'm sorry about the spelling mistakes but I don't have spell check.

PussInBootsAndMonkeyzNamedJack: I'm sorry it was so sad, I was sad writing it but you'll be happy again, I swear. Not saying that Jack'll come back mind, but he may. Keep that in mind.

Rose Noire le Mort: Why did Anamaria call Nicholas Jack? Well, I think you're talking about the part at the pool. She saw Jack in the water and ran down to him. When she hugged him and pulled away it was Nicholas and not Jack. Jack changed because he was there and then Nick took his place. Sorry.


	25. Prayer For An Unbeliever

Hey, again sorry about the long delay. It's not as long as my Harry Potter one though. Please enjoy.

Chapter twenty-five: Praying for an unbeliever

It was now pitch black. They made their way through the forest with out incident, moving silently as they could through the trees. Will carried Elizabeth in his arms, not daring to let her go now. He couldn't believe he had let her get hurt. He couldn't believe he had almost killed her.

"Elizabeth." He whispered. Her head was on his shoulder and she was silent, asleep. He kissed her forehead softly and then looked over at the man walking beside him. "Who are you again?" He knew he sounded rude but he didn't care. His baby was dead, his wife was injured and he'd killed his uncle/best friend. He really didn't have any emotion left for niceties.

"My name is Christian." He answered. "I'd shake your hand but…" He nodded at Elizabeth. "Your wife, she's a very…independent woman." Will nodded. "I'm glad you're alright."

"I'm not alright." Will snapped unexpectedly. Taking a deep breath, he said more calmly. "I'm sorry, it's just…"

"Captain Sparrow." Christian said quietly, nodding and looking up at the bright moon, appearing every once and a while through the gaps in the trees. "He was a…a complicated man." Will managed a smile this time.

"He was my uncle…and my friend." Will answered. "He is a…was a complicated man. You're right." Will laughed lightly. "From the moment I met him he seemed very strange."

"How did you meet?" Christian asked, confused. He obviously thought that if someone was related to you, you should have known them since the day you were born.

"He threatened Elizabeth, before we were married." He looked at his sleeping wife. "He's the reason we got married. If he hadn't led his crew to find the treasure…if he hadn't threatened Elizabeth…if he hadn't known everything…I owe my life to him." Will's eyes found Anamaria and his heart clenched. "If that doesn't work…"  
"It will." Christian answered confidently. "It will work."

They came to the beach after a long walk, Bill stopping Will who was determined to follow Anamaria. "No." He whispered, running a hand along Will's face and turning to watch the woman disappear around the bend. "Let's just wait. If it doesn't work…" He let the statement hang in the air.

Anamaria came around the last of the tree clumps and her heart began to pound when she saw Jack's body. He was lying exactly where they had left him, untouched and looking so peacefully asleep he could have easily been just sleeping off a long night of drinking.

As the moon beat down on her like the sun and the waves sang to the shore, Anamaria kneeled down beside him and ran a hand along his stone cold face. He was so stiff! So disgustingly stiff. Swallowing the urge to cry, she turned her head to look along the blood bathed beach. It was amazing that most of that had come from one body…from Jack's body. All of that had once fueled a human being.

Slowly, she lifted the bottle and popped the cork, watching as a small shadow of a woman drifted out the top and vanished into smoke. It had a flowery sweet smell, a sickly smell that turned her stomach. It was a smell she associated with what the flowers in India must have smelled like, though she had never been. Wrinkling her nose, she let her hand hover over the body of the man she loved, the liquid only a quivering drop away from him receiving it.

What if it didn't work? What if she poured and nothing happened? What would she do then? Would she be able to cope with the loss? But…then again, what if it did work? What if he came back? Held her in his arms and kissed her? She slap him for scaring her like that! Or would she?

Slowly, the quivering drop fell…then another…then another. One after the next, the drops fell until there was a steady stream, covering his stomach and moving up his throat to his cheek. Anamaria didn't know how much she'd need, didn't know what, if anything, would happen. She set down the bottle and waited…and waited. Minutes crept by and all that moved or stirred was the palm trees above them and the slight breeze. It hadn't worked.

Anamaria felt the sting of tears in her eyes and let her head fall into his neck, screaming, sobbing whatever. The howl of misery that was inside her burst. She didn't care who saw her, didn't care who heard. He was gone! Jack Sparrow, the 'immortal' Captain Jack Sparrow, was gone!

She could hear his voice in her head, remember every song he'd sing in drunken stupidity, every time her hand had crossed his face. The memories though, they weren't enough! They would slip with time, like water through cupped hands and be lost forever. There would never be another adventure, never be another story!

She was still there to remember him but what would happen when she was gone? What would happen to her memory? Lost in her grief, Anamaria happened to look up, about to curse God for hurting her this way, when there was a motion near her that caught her eye.

A small bead of blood was moving up Jack's hand, running along the skin to his stomach. It slid off the side of his palm, ran along the stained areas of his shirt and entered the rip…and then vanished. There was more movement, though, all around her! Blood, lots of blood, was moving from different spots, turning liquid and running in rivers up the sand towards her.

The red liquid on the tree began to drip, hitting the sand and flowing over her legs and arms, back towards Jack, hot and red…as if it had just been bled. She shivered not just with delight but shock and leaned closer to watch the cut on his cheek healing, the skin forming back together until it was just a small mark and suddenly…it was gone to.

"Oh my God." Anamaria whispered, pressing on the fabric of his shirt as it molded back together, gradually transitioning from red to white as the wound beneath sucked back in it's life's water.

The color in his skin was no longer gray, either. It was the same tanned brown she loved and his body…it was warm again! A warmth she hadn't felt since before the curse of the Aztec gold. "Jack?" Anamaria asked quietly, shaking him. His head lolled from side to side, eyes still closed. There was no heartbeat and no breath.

"Jack?" Anamaria asked, louder this time. She had the fleeting idea of calling over Bill and the others but suddenly thought better of it. If he really was not coming back to her, she wasn't going to get her hopes up or theirs.

A thought came to her, so suddenly and so unexpectedly; it knocked the wind from her sails. She decided to do what she had promised herself she would never do again, not since Nicholas died. She decided to pray.

She really didn't believe in prayer anymore. What had God ever done for her? This, though, was out of desperation…maybe there was a small…dismal chance but it was still a chance. Hadn't Jack always taken the first chance he was given?

"Dear Lord," She began awkwardly, "I never ask you for anything. I haven't even talked to you in years but…even if you don't love me, even if you don't have a place in your heart for a pirate, have a place in your heart for a good man. This world will be an awful place if you let him die. I know he has his bad points but, he's so good." She stopped, listening. God stayed his silent self. "Please," She begged, tears tumbling down her cheeks. "Please help me! Help me save him!" She was screaming now, screaming to the cloudless sky as stars twinkled over head. "I've done all I can! I can't do anymore! He's my life! He's my life!" Anamaria let her head fall onto his chest again. "Please I beg you…I love him." Now her voice fell to a whisper. "Help me."

She shifted her body so she was curled right up to him, soaking in his newfound warmth. Why was he warm if he wasn't coming back? She closed her eyes and cried. She cried for everything, for all her life…for not believing in God or Jack when he needed it the most. As she wallowed in grief and misery, a light thumping met her ears. It was her imagination though, it had to be.

"Jack…I love you Jack." Anamaria whispered, her voice muffled against his shirt. Then, suddenly, his chest heaved as he took a large, gasping, terrified breath. Anamaria shot up and pulled him into her arms as he took another one, if heart thumping fiercely against the walls around it. "Jack? Jack! Oh my God!"

Jack's eyes flew open and he looked around, confused and terrified as he took another painful gasp. "No!" Anamaria yelled, trying to get through to him as he wiggled to free himself from her. "No, Jack, it's okay. Calm down, your safe. You're with me."

Jack's breathing slowed and he stared at her, a blank expression on his face. "Ana?"

"What?" Anamaria giggled, "You remembered my…" But before she could finish the sentence he's grabbed her, kissing her hungrily as though he'd never kissed anyone in his life. Anamaria moved into it, letting him pull her down. When they broke apart she took a deep breath. "I love you Jack."

"I know." Jack whispered. "I…I…" He couldn't say it? To hell and back and he couldn't say three simple little words. "Anamaria, I…"

"Am dead." Said a voice behind them. Anamaria turned, clutching Jack to her and came face to face with someone's fist.

TO MY REVEIWERS:

Alteng: Hey. Yes, the Holy Relic of Vecna is quite…frightening. Reading it was scary to because…no offence…it was weird. Oh well, I liked it. It made me laugh. Yeah, the clean up crew is here. Of course, there's more to come…battles to be fought, lost and won! You'll see. It'll be great. The feelings with Ana was one reason I killed him off but also he's really hard to write I find and I was slipping so if I killed him off for a while I could get onto other things and of course, show the true power of this treasure.

xkohleyesx: I'm glad my story was one of the first you checked. That makes me really proud. I'm glad you like it and I hope you liked this chapter. I liked writing it.

DragonHunter200: I'm missing half your review! My computer won't show me all of it. I have it on my email but I'm to lazy to look so…LOL. I can remember a lot of it though, how are the kittens? Still batting at the screen? They're not trying to get me still right? I made them happy? I can't wait for the Favorite Lines Thingy when it gets happier. I'm sorry about how sad it's been lately…kinda.

padme17: I'm sorry gain, for what I did. I hope this chappie made up for it. Of course, now that you've read it…unless your reading this first so I'm not gonna give anything away. Keep reading and reviewing.

forceflow46 ) : I've had a few that just stop to and I can tell you it's made me mad as well. Yeah, comp access sux! I hate not having internet and my stupid laptop! Oh well, my uncle fixed it and I get it back in a few days. A few of the things you said in your last review made me laugh, especially when you speculated on what will happen. I won't tell you why because it would give everything away but you'll see. I have the whole story planned out and It's sequal so…actually the whole story is done, just putting it up will be the challenge now. I hope thanksgiving went all right for you. I'm guessing you live in the USA because you meantioned the holidays. I live in Canada so I hade my thanksgiving like…a month ago. Thanks anyway though. I live really far out of the nearest city, about an hour so the library is really far. I used to do that when I lived closer.


	26. Jelly Legs

Hey everyone! Sorry it took me so long but stupid school and stupid computer! Man, my computer is making me so mad but I'll get over it. I hope you all enjoy this chapter; it kinda ends abruptly…read and review please. Thanks.

Chapter Twenty-Six: Jelly Legs

There was wind…wind blowing on her face and making little strands of hair tickle her nose. Anamaria kept her eyes closed and just listened, trying to gage her surroundings. Wind meant there was either a draft or…she was outside. She was sitting up as well, and her hands were tied to something ruff like the main mast of a ship.

Opening her eyes, Anamaria let them adjust to the moonlight. There were men walking around on the deck, moving barrels and other boxes, making room for one large crate that five of the crewmen were carrying. It looked like a coffin.

Turning her head to the left, Anamaria was met by Gillette's blood drenched face, leaning against the main mast next to her. Turning it to the right, Anamaria was met with…

"Jack!" Anamaria whispered, trying to get his attention. His eyes were closed but they opened blearily when she said his name. Anamaira couldn't help but smile as she stared into those eyes…so full of expression and relief…and something she couldn't quite put her finger on. He was alive! It had worked! "Jack, what happened? Where are we?"

"Barbossa's ship." Jack muttered. He was pale and looked sick…but he was alive! Anamaria could tell he was trying to keep his voice as strain-free as possible but she could still hear it in the scratchiness of his words. "They…uh…" He closed his eyes for a moment and took a deep breath. "They took us from the beach and brought us here, 'bout an hour ago."

An hour? Jack had to be lying; there was no way she had been out for an hour. "What are they doing? Anamaria asked, staring at the long crate. "What's in there?"

"Well, why don't I show you?" Barbossa asked, coming forward and cutting the rope that tied all hostages to the main mast. As Anamaria's arms fell to her sides, she suddenly realized the pain on her wrists and saw the bruises and cuts from the rough material of the ropes. A man walked forward and grabbed Anamaria, pulling her roughly to her feet as more pirates grabbed the others.

They led them to the crate and lined them up, facing the crate. Anamaria looked over at the others. Right away she realized Elizabeth and Christian were missing…where were they and how had they got away?

Norrington was nearest her, his hands hanging loosely at his sides, upper arms held tightly in the grasp of a giant man. His powdered wig was missing and she was startled to see that he had dark brown hair, cut so short there was almost nothing there at all. Probably because of lice.

Next to him was Jack. He was hanging off the man holding him and was the only one not looking at the crate before them. He was staring at the sea, tossing gently over the railing, his face blank…lost in thought about something as his legs sagged beneath him. Jelly Legs…he looked like he had just come back from a heavy night of drinking in Tortuga….or like he'd just been flogged, especially with his pale face and the fine trickle of sweat running down his forehead.

Beside him was Gibbs. He looked fine except for the fact that he was swaying badly and his eyes were slightly unfocused. Barbossa watched them, standing beside the crate. Glancing around, Anamaria took in the two crews…Mulan's who were all watching her cautiously, and Ethan Barbossa's crew…the ex-crew of the _Black Pearl_. It seemed that Marko's entire crew had been decimated by Will. Looking around, Anamaria felt her stomach clench. Where was Will or Bill for that matter?

"Another ten." Marko said viciously. Will closed his eyes tightly and held his breath as the man behind him, Mulan, brought the whip down again, slashing into his back deeply. How many were they on now? He didn't know. All he could remember was the moment they brought him in here, into the dungeon of this ship. How long he'd been in here was clouded by pain.

In the corner of the room, his father was strapped to a turn table, his arms stretched out above him, the ropes cutting deep into his flesh. The man in the corner was asking him questions, sneering, but Will couldn't hear what was being said. He was in to much pain.

"Nine…" Will gritted his teeth, trying not to yell out as they threw salt water on the wound. "Ten." And it was done. With one final slash, the two men came back around and stood in front of him. "That, Turner, was for killing my crew." Marko said, looking over at Mulan. "Don't bring them…I want them for later."

"What about Turner's wife…and the doctor?" Mulan asked, watching Bill in the corner as the man questioning him turned the wheel again, stretching out his limbs.

"Don't worry about them. They have no where to go and we have men on all the ship's decks. They can't get near us. Don't worry."

Elizabeth sat still, leaning against the log. It seemed like days since they had last sat here; getting ready to go after the bottle, when Jack had just died and Elizabeth had just lost her baby. She looked over at Christian who was peering over the log, watching the three ships below.

"It seema like they're all on that one ship there." He whispered, squinting through the dark. Elizabeth didn't bother to turn and look. "I think I can see Anamaria, the Commodore, Gillette and Jack." Christian grinned. "Jack's alive."

Elizabeth smiled slightly and looked up at the moon, peeping through the palm trees, watching her. At least one thing had gone right. "What about Will?" She looked over at Christian but he shook his head.

"No, he's not there. Nor is Mr. Turner…senior." Christian turned around and leaned against the log too. "How are you feeling Mrs. Turner?" He asked.

"This isn't the time for formalities, doctor." Elizabeth said simply. "You can call me Elizabeth." Christian smiled. "I feel about as fine as I can. I'm dying, aren't I?"

"No." Christian whispered, leaning his head against the rough bark of the log and watching her through half closed eyes. She suddenly realized how exhausted he looked. "You're injuries are…"

"Don't lie to me. I may be a woman but I can take whatever you have to say. Don't treat me like I'm fragile, please!"

"Yes then. You will die with out the proper care…the elixir." Elizabeth nodded. "But they have it and I don't see any way to get it." He again turned around and watched the ships below. "I'm going to go down, see if I can find any way to get them free."

"I can't come with you." Elizabeth said, shaking her head. She was drained…exhausted. "I'll stay here and assist you if I can. Later though." Christian nodded and then took off, disappearing around the log and making his way down the slope, through the trees and down to the bay.

Jack leaned against his captor and took in the sickening odor of pit sweat and rotting meat…what the hell was that? It smelled like the man was rotting or had ate something an it was rotting. Either way, Jack knew one thing, it wasn't him.

"You have all gathered here," Said a voice off to his left. Jack turned his head slowly, the weight of it making it flop around on his weak neck, to look at Mulan and Marko walking across the deck with slow and deliberate steps. Marko, Fredrick Marko the slime ball, piss faced, two timing, backstabbing, bloody bastard! Jack felt a smile curl his lips as Marko's eyes fell on him and then shifted to Anamaria.

Marko smiled on seeing her and came forward, making his way through the milling crew easily as they leapt aside to clear a path for him. He reached out and hand and ran it down her cheek.

"Anamaria. You look lovelier by the second." He said, running and hand over her lips. If Jack hadn't hated Marko so much, he would have warned him not to do that because Anamaria liked to bite and, sure enough… "Ouch!" Marko pulled his hand back, rubbing his index finger, which had begun to bleed. With a quick move, he backhanded her into the man behind her. The man caught her and held her up as her head whipped back to glare.

"Hey!" Jack yelled with more strength then he thought he had. "Didn't your mother tell you not to hurt a woman mate?"

Marko turned and smiled at him. "She's no woman. She's simply a whore pirate who's pretending." He looked back at Anamaria and the man holding her smirked.

"I was talking to her." Jack said, nodding to Anamaria and then, lifting his hand he bit his finger lightly. "I was asking her weather her mother ever taught her not to hurt a woman." Marko smiled more widely and came forward until he towered over Jack and the man holding him up.

"You can never lose your wit, do ye Jack Sparrow?" He asked. Reaching out, his fingers snaked around Jack's throat and he pulled him close, making the man behind him let go. Jack, weak from dying, couldn't stand properly and ended up choking as Marko wouldn't let go of him. "You see that crate behind me?" Jack didn't answer. "Once we revive Barbossa, you're taking his place."

With no room for fear, Jack set his face into an unimpressed look and watched Marko defiantly. Pissed, Marko threw Jack sideways and he collided with Norrington. They hit the ground hard and around them, the remaining crew laughed.

"You shouldn't make him mad, Sparrow." Norrington warned quietly. Jack rolled his eyes and looked over at Marko who was ignoring him, walking over to the crate.

"Oh please." Jack laughed, loud enough for Marko to hear. "He's a scary as my hat! Speaking of which…" Jack looked around as though searching for it. "I'd really like it back." Norrington stared at him for a moment and then helped him into a standing position. Jack leaned against him awkwardly, both men realizing how odd this was. "I don't know you cared."

"I'm sorry if I gave you the impression that I did." Norrington answered crisply. Jack smiled and didn't answer, his eyes moving back to Mulan who had bent over the crate with Ethan and Marko…the slime ball.

From behind the crate, Ethan pulled out a small bottle and Jack, realizing what it was, took a step away from Norrington and almost ended up on his back again as weakness spread over his legs. "Lift the lid." Ethan said quietly, uncorking the bottle and looking over at Jack through glittering eyes. "Let's release my brother."

Three strong crewmen stepped forward from the circle around them and, with strong bars and axes, managed to remove the lid with most of it still intact. When the cloud of dust had dispersed, Jack was able to just see part of the crate's contents.

The last time Jack had seen Barbossa, it had been about a week after he had escaped from his hanging, when the crew had gone back to load up on treasure. Since then, he hadn't set foot on Isla de Muerta, contrary to popular belief. Jack himself had made the story, to cover his tracks, saying that he had made a home on the dreaded Isle and was served by mermaids and scantily clad women.

Poor Barbossa. If Jack hadn't still held a grudge against the man for stealing his ship, he probably would have felt sorry for him and a little ashamed of shooting him in the chest. Barbossa was now just a pile of bones…well, a pile of bones again only he didn't walk or talk anymore. His body lay in the box, cloths still on but ratty and torn. One bony hand rested on his rib cage, the other on the hilt of a shining sword. Jack sighed, at least he was dead.

Ethan smiled, as though seeing his brother like this was the best thing in the world, and then looked over at Jack. "Sparrow, do you see what you have done?" Jack raised an eyebrow at being addressed like this but stayed silent, wondering where this was going and realizing he couldn't care less. "My brother…you may have beat him but it was…will be, a short lived victory."

"No." Jack answered. "The victory was in watching the surprised look on his face as he bled out; knowing he was going to die…and I had won."

"He'll have the same pleasure." Ethan answered. He looked over Jack's shoulder. "Bring him here." Suddenly, Jack was ripped out of Norrington's grasp and dragged over to the casket. Ethan grabbed the back of his head and pushed it down, into the wood, his nose just inches from Barbossa's. Jack grimaced at the smell of rot and decay but was too weak to do anything about it but stare down at the empty eye sockets and the chasm where his nose should have been. "Get a good look; you'll be like that very soon."

Jack managed to laugh. "What? The East India Company, slimy bastards, failed to kill me. Tortuga failed to kill me. Emily failed to kill me…" Jack closed his eyes. That had just slipped. On the far side of the crate, he could almost feel Anamaria's eyes on him. Quicly, he covered it up. "All those bar wenches…all of them, failed to kill me! Barbossa, you're brother who was a…" The pressure of Ethan's hand on the back of his neck made him hold his tongue. "Failed to kill me not once, but twice! Will didn't kill me. Why do you think you'll have the pleasure?"

"Wait." Ethan growled. "You will be a pile of bones."

Jack sighed. Clearly his little speech had fallen on deaf ears. "I tried it once; Will didn't think it suited me." Ethan pulled him back up and shoved him back to his captor who held him upright. Ethan walked slowly over to the casket and suspended the bottle over his brother's bones.

Elizabeth crawled to her feet; tears spilling down her face. The pain in her stomach was over whelming…it felt as though someone had been tearing her insides out through her belly button. 'It's just the baby.' She told herself silently, placing a hand on her stomach. 'Her little body is just…' Just what? Pushing it out of her mind, Elizabeth leaned on the log and peered through the darkness to the ships below. There was movement on deck but her head was swimming and her eyes screwing up in pain and dizziness. She had to find help, Christian couldn't do it alone.

Moving forward, Elizabeth pushed into the trees, not sure of what she was searching for. She needed to find someone…anyone to help. Weakly, she ran into trees and tripped over shrubs, pushing deeper and deeper into the dense forest around her until she heard it, the sound of the waterfall again and the feeling of being watched intensified. Maybe they could help? Somehow, anyway she needed someone.

The waterfall's pool was dark now, a small gap in the foliage showing her the cascading waterfall, white and ghostly in the moonlight. She watched the dark water below but it was empty; there was no one there.

Where were they? Where was her mother and her baby? They had been there just hours before, to great her. Maybe she had to get closer? Elizabeth stumbled down the muddy banks until she reached the water's edge and scanned the icy black pool. There was someone out there, in the middle of the water.

A woman was walking towards her through the waist high water, her form foreign to Elizabeth's eyes. It wasn't her mother…or Anamaria. The woman was tall with muscular arms and legs, both visible beneath the damp white sleeves and skirt she wore. On her back was a sword and a bow, partially hidden behind a flowing veil of black hair; on her forehead was a small tiara with a jewel. She was so beautiful.

"Who are you?" Elizabeth called out, watching the woman approach. The other didn't answer but continued to wade through the black. "Will you not answer me?" She was so tall! She had to be taller then the Commodore and as muscular as Will. She had high cheekbones, now at this close range, Elizabeth could see small jewels sunken into her brown skin, out linining her eyes and a small red dot on her forehead.

"Elizabeth Turner?" She asked. Elizabeth was shocked, how did she know her name? And how could she talk without moving her lips? "I know what you are thinking. You are thinking 'How can she be knowing who I am? How can she be speaking to me?' I know everything about you, Elizabeth Turner." The woman reached out and placed a hand on Elizabeth's stomach. "I am sorry for Alinasa. She felt threatened."

"Who are you?" Elizabeth asked. The woman smiled and let her hand drop.

"I am Morliana, a princess of India. Of course, you are knowing that already…yes?" Elizabeth nodded. "You know who I am, as I am knowing you. I know why you are here." She now spoke slowly and deliberately, as though weighing every word in an accent so foreign; Elizabeth was trying to translate still.

"Will you help me then?" Elizabeth asked, though she could guess the answer.

"You doubt I will help you and you are right. I will not." Elizabeth mad to protest and argue her case but Morliana beat her to it. "No. It is all for selfish gain. The bottle, through the powers it is having, wield to great and awful a curse. I am no longer in possession of it."

"But surly you want to stop them from using it!" Elizabeth cried. "They want to use it for selfish gain, not us…"

"Is not bring back Jack Sparrow for selfish gain?" Elizabeth closed her mouth. Anamaria had loved Jack, she wanted him back. Was that a selfish thing to do? "Is not bringing your husband and child back, a selfish gain?"

"I am human though." Elizabeth answered. "And right now, I need help. We need help." Morliana shook her head and turned away. With out thinking, Elizabeth waded into the water after her and grabbed her arm but, instead of grabbing flesh, she felt only mist beneath her fingers and drew back. Startled, she tried to regain her composure as Morliana continued into the darkness. "But you were in love once!"

The other stopped and slowly turned, cocking an eyebrow. "What?" She asked.

"Raoul Markling." Elizabeth answered quietly as Morliana began walking back towards her. "You loved him. He was the Captain of the _Fated Parting _and you left with him to get away from Perdolin." Morliana stared at her in the dark. "I love Will and my child, Anamaria loves Jack and he loves her…I'm sure. You know what we're thinking before we do. You know what we're feeling before we do but somehow, you become clouded by yourself! Help me. Help them."

Morliana looked away from her at last and seemed lost in thought for a while. Suddenly, there was a rustling all around them. Elizabeth turned and saw dark female shapes dissolving out of the darkness on the banks of the pool.

"You have your warriors. And surely, once the curse is lifted and the bottle consumed, you can leave this place and got back…back to him." Morliana smiled in the darkness.

To My reviewers:

DragonHunter200: Hey, sorry about your reveiw last time where it deleated most of it! Yeah, i'm glad i'm safe from the fangirls now, i was getting a little worried there. lol. Yeah, I must admit, I loved the blood part to, it was fun to write except I didn't like the praying part. I had to change it like...30 times until I got it close to spmething I could live with. I'm glad your kittens are...thriving. lol. Get working on your rum story man, i miss it. No pressure or anything.

Toxic-Beetle: Hi. Well, since you've only read up to chappie 12 i won't give anything away. I don't know where you are now but i hopw you enjoy the story. Good luck with you're honeymoon with Jack, i had one last night and it was great. We divorced this morning. I woke up...lol. Good luck!

Irish-bird: Jack's a complicated man, you know? There is no nice little ending for him or anyone near him until the end of the tale. It's just the way it is. I'm glad you like it so far, hold on, there's so much more coming yet.

padme17: A punch in the face is nothing? Aren't you a kind person. lol, i'm just messing with you. Nah, Anamaria will have a sore face but she'll get over it. Keep reading and reveiwing.

Lord Harven: Thank you, I hope your farther then Chapter one now but if you aren't, you won't read this answer to your reveiw for a while. I hope you enjoy the rest of the story.

Gaze: No, I don't think finding out you were dead would be something you come back from really fast, even if you are a sexy pirate. Just leave Jack and Ana alone? What, are you crazy! Absence makes the heart grow fonder aparently and besides, who said that they were going to have a happy ending anyway...duhn duhn duhn! Lol, I'm glad your enviro club is going good. Good luck!

forceflow46: I got my laptop back but all the stuff I had on it was erased! Oh well, at least it woks, eh? Yep, I said sequal. I've already written a bit of it and i'm combing this story for things i left out that will tie in and such. I've left some small clues that will play a big role in the next one so...

Rose Noire le Mort: I'm sorry about stopping where I did last time but i had so much content I couldn't put it into the last chappie. I hope I made up for it but I love writing cliffhangers. I don't like reading them but they're fun to write. LOL, Sorry. I hope this chappie made up for it.


	27. Time War

I am so sorry it took so long and I totally deserve all the angry reviews you can throw me. Please, forgive me. I have a job now at the two local newspapers as an amateur journalist and I'm so happy. Also, Christmas was a nightmare! I'm glad it's over because I am beat, I love my family but they do get on my nerves. Anyway, please read and review. I'm so sorry!

P.S. My friend told me I have to write this thing that says I don't own POTC. Who thinks I do though, honestly. This is the first and last I'm gonna write, though I may have written one before, I wouldn't remember. If anyone sells POTC on ebay, it will be mine but until then…

Chapter 27: Time War

Christian made his way slowly along the beach, hidden from view of the pirates on the deck above him by the trees and shrub around him. The haunting song had ended abruptly a few minutes before and Christian continually glanced over his shoulder, watching for signs of trouble. Why had it suddenly stopped?

He crouched on the edge of the beach, facing the back of Mulan's ship and watched the people on the deck, the tops of a few guard's heads just visible over the railing high above him. He blew out a long deep breath and whipped sweat from his forehead with a shaking hand.

How was he going to get on board? Sitting back, Christian watched the ship through the darkness, trying to time the movement of the guards on board. The men, it seemed, had no pattern to their movements and Christian pounded on the sand with his hand. How could this happen? He'd had a nice practice starting back in Port Royal, he'd been happy! Damn Jack Sparrow!

Jack Sparrow? Christian's eyes racked the deck and he watched the pirates moving on board. Jack Sparrow? He'd grown up listening to the stories, why couldn't he use that to his advantage? What would Jack Sparrow do?

Stories came flooding back to him. He filtered out the nonsense ones, ones that had absolutely no truth at all and pondered over the ones that had some to most accuracy. Suddenly, an idea struck him and he watched the back of the ship. There were a series of ropes used for rigging and lowering rowboats. Maybe, if he climbed up the rigging and used the cannon ports for a foothold, he'd be able to get onto the deck. He'd worry about the next part when he came to it.

Clouds were heading towards the moon and soon they'd obscure it completely. Christian waited and watched with baited breath and soon the darkness was complete, giving him the cover he needed. Stealthily, he left his hiding spot on the edge of the trees and ran, bent-backed, along the beach towards the water's edge just as the clouds un-shrouded the moon and it shone down on him again.

The water was cool, the waves tossing his body as he waded into deeper water and began to swim, reaching out and grabbing a soaking wet length of rope and hitting the deck as a wave tossed him into it. Looking up, Christian watched the deck above him cautiously. No one seemed to have noticed anything and he began to climb, using his arms to pull himself up, gritting his teeth against the noise of the water as it dripped from his clothes.

The climb was tough, especially with his cloths sticking to him and the water in his shoes making his feet slip around as though they were a size to big. At the top, standing on the ledge of a running board just below the railing line, Christian cautiously peered over the edge and watched the knot of pirates across the deck. There was a crate, he could just make it out between the sea of legs and there was Jack. Christian watched as Jack was shoved into Commodore Norrington and they toppled to the deck in a heap.

A movement off to his left caught his eyes and he looked over just in time to duck as a guard turned his way and began to walk by. Crouching on the runner board, he listened intently to the sound of footsteps. As soon as they had died away, Christian looked over the railing and spotted the man standing not to far away, watching the scene near the crate.

Christian ignored what was happening and climbed over the edge quickly, ducking behind crates and boxes. He took off his shoes and put them down silently beside the boxes. He didn't want to risk someone hearing him coming. Standing again, he bent low and ran to the stairs leading down to the lower decks, his feet slapping loudly on the warped wood.

Where were all the guards? Mulan, Marko and Barbossa must have been confident that there was no way someone would get on board. Making his way swiftly through the maze of passages below, Christian paused only long enough to peer around corners before moving on. It seemed to take forever, every room he pushed into was empty and soon, disheartened, he pushed into what felt like the hundredth room and gasped.

Anamaria held her breath as the bottle tipped, the liquid quivering just on the edge of the bottle's mouth. What would happen when the liquid touched Barbossa? She'd heard the tales Jack had told about his fight with Barbossa and really didn't wish to find out first hand. She had to do something.

Taking a deep breath she brought her head forward and then back sharply, smashing it into the man's face behind her. He howled with rage and pain and fell back, letting go of her just as the others reacted, Men came after her from all sides as her allies began to fight back also.

Anamaria spun around one man, narrowly avoiding his blundering form as another came at her. He blocked her every move to escape and finally she had to just pop him in the face with her fist.

Jack had been knocked into the crate and lay on his stomach, sprawled on the ground at its base. Anamaria rushed over to him and dragged him up as the others, somehow, procured swords and were fighting hard but they were outnumbered and had no chance in hell of beating them.

"Jack." Anamaria cried, pulling his arm around her shoulder. He leaned on her gratefully until she pulled him around to face her. "Jack, I wanted to tell you before that…"

"Look, luv." Jack yelled over the battle, glancing down at Barbossa's bones in disgust. "I'd love to chat but…" A man lunged at them and hit the crate, his sword sinking into the thick wood. With one quick move, Jack wound up and punched him square in the face, dropping him instantly. "Ouch!" Jack hissed, rubbing his knuckles. Anamaria grabbed his hand and began pulling him along, ducking under swinging arms as the others fought.

"We have to find Will and Bill." Anamaria called over her shoulder, swiping black hair out of her face. "I don't know where they…" Mulan was facing them across the deck, a sword in his hand, his eyes shinning with malice. Jack's grip on Anamaria's hand tightened painfully and his face moved into a half grimace, half growl.

"Bloody hell." He hissed, trying to move forward but he ended up tripping over his own feet and running headlong into Anamaria. She caught him and held him up as he watched Mulan.

"Look around you Jack." Anamaria yelled. She whipped around and punched a pirate square in the side of the head. He fell over and then she continued. "We need help."

"And where are we going to get that?" Jack yelled back. Anamaria stared around desperately. She wished they had the Pearl. As they turned to go the other way, Mulan attacked from behind.

Christian raced across the room and began playing with Will's bond but they were iron and he couldn't pries them loose from the beam they were connected to. Desperately, he moved to Bill.

The ropes were tied tight but, after a few frantic moments, Christian finally wised up and began looking around for a weapon.

"My boot!" Bill yelled, wiggling his left foot. "There's a dagger in there!" Christian yanked Bill's boot off and looked at the ceiling as the sounds of battle broke out above. "Jack must be alive then?" Bill asked, smiling. Christian nodded. "No one but him could cause a racket like that." Christian smiled began to look around frantically.

"Where is the key?" Christian asked, turning his back on Bill and moving to the small wooden desk in the corner. The candle had been extinguished some time ago and there was no light to be had in this dark corner.

"I believe I saw that slimy bastard Mulan put it into one of the drawers…the top drawer." Bill was working on Will's wrists, trying to relieve the pressure the iron was exerting on them. "That bastard."

"You talk as if you know him." Christian said over his shoulder, riffling through the blackened drawer. Bill's derisive snort made him turn around and abandon his quest for the keys for a brief moment.

"I did." Bill said quietly, but loudly enough for them to hear. "He…" Bill looked over at Christian. "Keep searching, we don't have all day." Christian sprung back to work, pulling drawers completely out of their holds. As he pulled the last drawer out, a pile of papers fell to the floor but nothing else. There was no key.

"Where's the key?" Christian hissed frantically, tearing through the papers fruitlessly. No matter how much he searched through the mess at his feet, he knew he wouldn't find anything. It was hopeless. Christian stopped and looked up, watching Bill and Will in the middle of the room. Will's back was to him but Christian could guess the look on his face was much like the one his father wore, afraid and angry. "What do we do?"

"It has to be in there, Mulan was over there." Bill cried, not bothering to keep his voice down as the roar above them grew to breaking point. "It has to be there."

Christian shook his head and picked up one of the drawers, ready to throw it when he caught sight of a small glittering light on the bottom of it. Stopping in mid throw, Christian dropped the drawer onto the desk top and stared in utter amazement at the small gold key. It had been hung on a small hook in the wood, the perfect hiding place.

"Got it." Christian pried it off the hook and, slipping on the papers littering the floor, made his way over to Bill and Will. Bill snatched it from him and began unlocking the shackles that held his son's wrists tightly in their iron grip. "You're welcome."

"Thank you, doc. Now, go find a sword." Christian stared at him.

"A sword?" He said blankly. All this excitement had made him feel rather dumb. "Sword…oh, yeah, I'll just go…" Instead of continuing to make himself look more stupid, Christian wobbled off around the room searching high and low for a sword, any sword.

He found a knife lying on a table in the corner and picked it up. Bill's amused and slightly annoyed voice cut through the darkness. "That's not a sword. Bloody hell, what did they teach you in that medical school of yours?" Christian turned and glared at him for a second before looking under the table. Between the spindly legs, half concealed in darkness he could see a blade.

"I…I found one." Christian pulled it out and held it into the pool of light for the other men to see. Bill grinned and Christian was amazed to see how much he looked like his son when he did so.

"Good, bring it over here." Christian did as he was told as Will's arms, both free now, fell to his sides and he began rubbing his wrists.

Bill took the sword as Christian took Will's wrists and began examining them. They were bruised and cut, blood running in small streams down his forearms to his elbows. Christian rummaged in his pockets and found a small handkerchief which he pulled out and tried to tear into strips but the fabric was to strong and wouldn't give.

"Here." Bill held up the sword and Christian ran it along the blade until it was ripped enough for him to do the rest. "Your welcome." Bill said, moving to the door. Christian looked up but didn't answer as he began to pull the fabric apart.

He tied it tightly around Will's wrists and then turned to Bill. "Clear?" Bill nodded and Will and Christian followed. At the door, Bill handed Will the dagger from his boot.

"What's this for?" Will asked. Bill looked at him as though he was crazy and didn't answer. Will tucked the dagger into the top of his pants and followed his father out into the hall. Christian, thinking that he might need a weapon (But knowing if he'd be able to use it) turned back into the room and grabbed the knife from the spindly legged table.

"Just in case." He whispered. He met up with the others in the hall and they

headed to the deck as fast as they could. They had to get up to the deck and fast, a roar of anger had erupted on top and a low chant was beginning to rise into the sky.

To My Reviewers (The greatest people on the planet):

**Starknight**: Hey! Nice to hear from you. I hope you like the story, once you get through the 26 chapters. I'm glad you were impressed, this is the longest I've stuck with anything so I'm proud to but some people have like…50 so. Thank you and I hope I hear from you again soon.

**forceflow46 ** Yep, u had it about right. I had a lot of problems but I won't try and justify it any more. I'm so sorry. Forgive me. I hope I made up for it, kinda. But I really didn't like this chappie much. I'm my own worst critic though and I'll let you decide. Oh, it's belated but good luck with the snow. Maybe U can make mine go away now. I have a date on the 22nd so…

**Toxic-Beetle:** It's okay, review when you can. I do that to, I read a story and then review or I think I reviewed and then I forget. It's funny. Best fic's you've ever read? Wow, thank you that's very nice. I don't think it is but, I'm the writer so…I wouldn't. Thank you very much. Just one second, Jack wants to say something… "Divorce? That's such a strong word, luv. I prefer short separation." That's what I said, thanks. Lol

**DragonHunter200: **It's okay, I always have things I could have sworn I did, like change my socks. I could have sworn I'd done that and here we are a week later and they have crawled away. LOL. You know what, even if it was a triumphant return of the favorite line thingy, it is still appreciated and Jack loves it. Oh by the way, the order of your review confused me but I got your email and it was all good. It made me laugh afterwards.

**xImmortalx: **Hey, ur not the slowest updater, I am! Sorry it took me so long, I've been saying that so much but you know school and all. Jack gay?! It's possible I guess…my dad thinks so but I like to tell him it's all in his imagination. My dad's just mad b/c I like a guy only 10 yrs younger then him. LOL.

**Alteng: **Mean to the Turner's? A little bit of torture never hurt anyone. LOL. Yeah I thought of the thing with giving it to Elizabeth first but I needed it this way so…I don't remember why now but there was something important about the order. I made it up last summer on the lawn mower. LOL. I was confused with the Hector thing for a minute. Then I figured out who you were talking about and I hit myself. It was funny.

**Padme17: **I got what you were saying, now lets see if I can confuse you…I didn't know if it was possible for a story to get interesting at the height of interestingness but I guess if it could, it wasn't as interesting as it could be. Confused? Probably not. LOL. Keep reading and reviewing. Oh, and the supernatural stuff will stay. Supernatural stuff is the easy part, and I love supernatural. The India lady, I got the idea from my aunty. She looks like that (even though we're not from India she looks like and Indian so it was cool)

**And to anyone else I forgot, I'm sorry. Either you didn't send in a review or it got deleted. Either way, I appreciate it all the same. **


	28. The Final Battle Part One

It took me to long to get started on this chappie and you'll notice it's hastily written. I'm sorry, and I'll understand if I have no more reviewers. I should be beaten…

Chapter 28: Final Battle Part One

Elizabeth fought her way through thick brambles and trees that caught her cloths and broke off in her hair. She could feel some of the scratches on her face bleeding down her cheeks and the pain in her stomach had reaches such a pitch that she could feel her head swim.

In front of her, the shadowy women walked slowly and gracefully through the trees, their luminous dresses clinging to their bodies, unmoving in the wind. They chanted, their voices rising over the surf to her far left and right as the moonlight beat down onto their black heads, like it was reaching to them.

She hadn't learned their names but didn't feel the need to know them. She knew Alinasa; she'd never forget her, not in a million years. Even though they hadn't been introduced, Elizabeth could pick out Alinasa in the women ahead of her. Morliana glanced back every once in a while, as though to check that Elizabeth was still with her but didn't slow her purposeful strides. It wasn't until they were almost at the log where Elizabeth and Christian had sat, did Elizabeth hear the gun fire.

Below, in the bay, gun shots lit up the deck for a few seconds at a time and glints of steal flashing through the air were all around as the ants of men below battled. Elizabeth's breath caught in her throat.

"Will." She whispered. The women began moving down the grassy slope as slow as they had gone through the trees and Elizabeth scrambled after them, annoyed by their calm chanting. What were they doing? Where they going to help her? "Wait! Wait!" She grabbed for Moliana's arm but the woman pulled away before Elizabeth could reach her and turned, her mouth still but the sound of her voice in the chant still blending in with the others. "You have to stop them."

Morliana smiled and the moon glinted in her eyes, throwing life into her face. Elizabeth stepped back and looked past them to the ship below. "I will do what I can." Morliana said, her smooth voice echoing in Elizabeth's head. "Don't worry, Elizabeth. Everything will be just fine."

"We're to help?" Alinasa asked, stepping forward. "We're to help them?" She gestured towards the ship below where a male cry floated up to them and then was suddenly hushed. Morliana nodded.

"You've shown bravery beyond all I could ask." Morliana smiled and reached out, placing her hand on Elizabeth's stomach. Instead of going through Elizabeth, her hand suddenly felt real, as though Morliana was really there before her. A warm tingling suddenly vibrated through her stomach and around her sides to her back, lifting up her spine to her head. As sudden as it started, it stopped and she was left standing there in the chilled air…alone.

Elizabeth looked around, startled as a chilling cold suddenly settled around her and her breath rose in a mist about her face. That was impossible, how could she see her breath in the Caribbean? Goosebumps rose on her arms and she shivered as her teeth started to chatter. Down below the chant started up again and she caught a glimpse of the warrior women, crawling up the side of the ship. They disappeared over the deck and were engulfed by the pirates on board.

The chill hung around her as the plants on either side of her began to wither and turn brown…everything around her was dying. By her feet, the grass turned black and curled around her navy boots. Not thinking, Elizabeth began to run down the slope and heard the trees falling in the forest behind her. Death had come to the island with the disappearance of the women.

She slipped on a blackened tuft of grass, tumbling down a short stretch of hill and hitting the sand hard on her side. She struggled to her feet and took off down the beach, hitting the water's edge just as the sand began disappearing and turning to cracked rock and dried earth.

Elizabeth stripped off her boots and waded into the water, trying to reach the ship as fast as possible, afraid the water would begin to change just like the island. She reached the ship and grabbed out for a sodden rope that hung off the side, climbing hand over hand in fear. She didn't feel tired or sick, she felt fine, what ever Morliana had done, it had helped somehow.

She grabbed the rail and pulled herself over the top just as someone slammed into it beside her and flipped over the edge. A very familiar someone.

Jack flung Anamaria as hard as he could to the right and Mulan's sword hit the deck where she had just been standing. Growling, Mulan wrenched his sword from the deck and moved towards Jack who had overbalanced in his haste and lay spread eagle on the wet planking.

Wincing, Jack tried to pull himself up but Mulan was on top of him in a matter of blinks and all Jack could do was kick out as Mulan's sword arced up. He connected with Mulan's stomach and the other doubled over, giving Jack enough room to scramble clumsily to his feet.

Mulan straightened, grinning. Where was Anamaria? Jack looked around but Mulan grabbed his throat before he could locate her, slamming him hard into the wheel platform's staircase. Jack tried to cry out as his back slammed into the railing's edge and he heard a rib crack.

"Oh Jack…Jack, you wouldn't believe how long I've been looking forward to this moment." His breath caressed Jack's face, making him gag. "Ever since my sister died…"

"Your sister?" Jack wheezed, clutching at Mulan's fingers. "Your sister? You killed your sister. Not me…" Mulan's fingers tightened and he sword hand rose, the sword poised to stink through his chest with one stroke. With his knees threatening to buckle and choke him or Mulan's sword threatening to kill him with one stroke, Jack saw only one choice. It was low and dirty…he didn't want to do it but…

Bringing up his knee, he drove it hard into Mulan's 'jewels'. Mulan dropped his sword and grabbed his crouch, falling sideways as he tried to catch his breath. Jack grabbed his sword and began running across the deck, tripping over his own uncoordinated feet. Death felt like the biggest hang over he'd ever experienced and his head swam as he fought to keep upright and find Anamaria.

Anamaria gasped as Jack pushed her and, unprepared, she hit the ground hard and felt her previously injured arm jar. If it hadn't been broken then, it probably was now. Head spinning, she crawled to her feet and saw Jack on the ground, Mulan coming towards him with a raised sword. She was about to attack him from behind when an arm grabbed her around the throat and pulled her backward to press against a large body.

"Hello luv." Marko rasped in her ear, his spit flying from his mouth and hitting her cheek. It rolled down her face and dripped onto her chest, dripping down the exposed skin where the few buttons had come away. "Where do ye think yer going?"

Anamaria tried to struggled but his arm tightened, choking off her breath. Dropping her hands, she let him lead her backwards, her eyes traveling across the deck. She could no longer see Jack and Mulan but her eyes were drawn to Norrington and Gillette who were holding off Barbossa and a few other pirates, including two who looked vaguely familiar…one had an eye patch and crinkly straw like hair. The other was paunchy with long grey hair falling to either side of his head and a bald spot…

Where was Gibbs? Suddenly, her vision was obscured as she was pulled into a cabin and the room spun as he pushed her onto the bed. Locking the door, he raised his sword as she rolled backwards over the bed, grabbing the lamp beside her and throwing it at him. The glass top smashed on the floor at his feet but he didn't even flinch, his eyes were set on her. He walked through the broken glass and began wending his way around the bed.

Anamaria, weaponless and very alone, took off through a door to the side of the bedroom area and found a small, carpeted, dinning room. A lantern swung from the dark roof and the table was still set. She could just make out the black outlines of plates and goblets, the knives and forks glinted in the moonlight streaming through the high, grubby, windows. It was just like the _Pearl_.

Behind her, Marko entered, shoving the door out of his way. It swung on rusty hinges with a grinding squeak and banged off the wall behind it. Anamaria moved around the table and picked up a long shimmering knife from the middle between two silver platters.

Marko laughed. "You always amused me, Annie." He chuckled, moving around the table slowly, pushing her back towards the bedroom. She matched him step for step and kept him in her sights, not wanting to lose him for a second. She knew she was outmatched but she had to do anything she could. She had to kill him, avenge Nicholas.

"Annie? You're still thinking of me as just a girl." Anamaria laughed, trying to keep her voice steady. "I'm not a little girl anymore."

"No." She could see his eyes moving up and down her body in the dark. "You're definitely not." They'd circled the table and now Anamaria had a clear shot of running back towards the bedroom but she didn't take it. That was she was more cornered then she was now. She refused to be trapped.

Will and Bill led the way through the wending corridors, the chanting above had grown to such a pitch that now they could hear the words being said. It was foreign and Christian strained to understand them. What he wouldn't give now to be sitting in a nice building in the heart of Port Royal, tending to patients in his own practice. Instead he was running through the belly of a ship, sweating and scared, gripping a knife in his right had so hard it hurt…

Will stopped at the stairs leading to the top deck and looked around, sharp eyes scanning the two doors on either side of them. So far they hadn't been met by any pirates and Christian knew this was worrying the young blacksmith.

Will seemed to decide they were safe and crossed the short expanse to the stairs. Will climbed quickly and cracked the door open, staring out at the deck. "It's a battle…there's women on board." Will looked back and a shiver crossed over him, so slight, Christian almost didn't see it. "Those warriors are fighting with us."

Bill frowned. "I don't trust them." He answered. Will shook his head and stepped out on to the deck. He was suddenly whipped away in a fierce fight with a young black haired man. Bill followed quickly and soon Christian was alone.

Glancing around at the creepy darkness, he began up the stairs but, as he began to creak the landing door open, a man stepped in front of him. In surprise, Christian dropped the knife and it bounced down the stairs to the ground below. The man reached out and grabbed his neck. Without thinking, Christian took a step back and they both fell down the stairs.

Jack reached the far side of the deck as Mulan got to his feet. A man jumped in front of him but Jack sliced him across the stomach with his sword and kept going, slipping across a large pool of blood on the deck and falling, sliding behind Barbossa's casket. He hit the deck hard and felt his cracked rip wrench inside him. Gasping, Jack crawled over to the other side of the casket and grabbed the potion bottle. The stopper was in it still and the liquid sloshed around inside it.

Mulan appeared there suddenly. He struck out with his sword and the tip ripped through the fabric on his shoulder, slicing a shallow cut into his arm. Jack followed its motion as it moved to his neck and he laid down flat on the deck, trying to get as far away from it as possible.

"I'm going to kill you nice and slow now Sparrow." Mulan hissed, pressing the sword tip lightly into his neck. He felt a small drip of blood slid down his neck to collect in the hollow between his neck and his chest.

"It didn't hurt that much." Jack laughed. "You'd have to have something to hurt." Mulan growled and sunk his blade into Jack's arm. Crying out, Jack tried to grab the blade but Mulan sat down on his stomach, pressing him down with his weight. His hand shot out and grabbed Jack's neck. Jack tried to grab him but Mulan twisted the sword and Jack's hand fell.

"Look…Jack, I never liked you but my respect for you is almost gone." Mulan said casually, as though they were strolling on the deck in the moonlight. "You first had no remorse for my sister, and then you consort with the Navy." Jack's eyes narrowed but he remained quiet. "Cheap shots…" Mulan shook his head.

A woman appeared over Mulan's shoulder and drew Jack's attention. She was beautiful with long black hair and a dot in the middle of her forehead. Her short black hair was wet looking and hung in dread like curls around her face. Oval brown eyes narrowed as she surveyed the scene before her and, even in his painful state of mind, Jack couldn't help but let his eyes wander to her clinging white top and bare belly.

She grabbed the back of Mulan's neck and pulled him up off Jack. The sword ripped out of Jack's arm and blood ran freely in hot, red rivers down his arm. The woman flung Mulan through the air and Jack heard a loud crack but couldn't see where Mulan had landed; his vision was obscured by the casket. The woman stepped towards him and lowered herself gently on top of him where Mulan had sat. Jack felt a numbing chill seep over him as her hand moved to his shoulder. She squeezed making Jack clench his teeth as white hot pain raced up and down his arm but soon it was replaced by a numbing chill and finally, nothing. Looking down, Jack was surprised to see the blood was gone and his shirt was whole and white again.

The woman smiled and leaned down, placing her lips squarely on his as her hand moved to his rib. Jack hissed but she held his lips firmly with hers and soon the pain was gone there too. The woman got up and disappeared behind the casket, leaving Jack laying there panting and staring up at the sky.

He wasn't quite sure what had happened but couldn't help smiling. Maybe death had its perks after all…he should die more often and get more action. Laughing to himself, Jack sat up and was about to crawl to his feet when his arm was grabbed in an iron grip and wrenched backwards, the bottle yanked out of his grasp.

Someone kicked him in the back and he fell forward, rolling over to see Ethan holding the bottle over his brother's remains. "I bet you can't wait, Sparrow." Ethan said grimly, uncorking the bottle. He began pouring the liquid into the casket and Jack, panicking, kicked out at Ethan's legs. He heard a sharp crack and Ethan cried out, falling to the deck hard. The bottle went flying across the deck and rolled towards the far railing, skittering in between the sea of legs around it.

Jack clawed his way to his feet and began struggling across the deck. Norrington was fighting a large black pirate and his two girlfriends halfway towards Jack's goal. As Jack crawled by, Norrington took a step backwards and tripped over one of Jack's legs. Crashing to the deck, the other three pirates were on top of him and a second and no one noticed Jack go by.

He reached the railing and corked the bottle just as someone grabbed him and turned him sharply. Jack stared, his mouth falling open. A rotted face, flesh falling from bones met his eyes only…the other had no eyes. Black pits exposed parts of stringy brain and, as Jack's eyes fell lower, he saw the shredding clothing and peeking bones. Barbossa had risen again.

"Hello Jack." Barbossa growled, his bony hand wrapping around Jack's throat. "Miss me?"

"Oh…hey." Jack smiled, trying not to show his revulsion. "You know, you're looking a little peaky. I know a great doctor who can help you with that…" Barbossa shook him slightly and his grip tightened. Jack gagged. "Have you lost weight?" Barbossa grabbed the bottle and pulled it away from Jack's grip and then lifted him into the air and threw him across the deck. Jack hit the railing hard and the world around him flipped around, starry sky spinning as he flipped backwards over the railing towards the frothing water below.

To My Reviewers:

Sherlock's Sparrow: (for chapter one) Hey, thanx for reviewing. If you're only on chapter one it's going to be a long time before you read this reply so…lol. I read one of you're stories, I think it was the one where Jack couldn't talk and there was a lesbian somewhere in there. LOL. I hope I'm not getting stories mixed up. Anyway, thanx for the review.

DragonHunter200: Thank you for the compliment. I don't know how good I am with battle scenes. I have this picture of what it should look like locked in my head and I tend to rush to get it all written out before I forget something crucial. Yeah I love Christian and I've written part of the next chapter, part two of this one and I think he's hilarious in the next one so you'll just have to read on an see. There's a highly recommend option? I never noticed. Thanx for clicking it tho, for what ever it does…Thank you, the journalism is going well…I guess. Lol. Not much happens around hick town tho…

Toxic-Beetle: Thank you, I'm glad you love it. If only I could update faster…lol.

forceflow46: Yeah, thanx. I wanted a strange little relationship (not slashy) to form between Norrington and Jack. Kinda like a forced respect. LoL. Um…I smell supper…I'm suddenly very hungry. Sorry, dazed out. Please keep reading and reviewing.

And to anyone else I may have forgotten or who just reads and doesn't review…thank you.


	29. The Final Battle Part 2

Hey! It didn't take me a month! This story is almost over (for real this time). I predict maybe three more chapters at the most. Lol.

Chapter 29 The Final Battle Part 2

Christian cried out in pain and blinked blood from his eyes, struggling with the man tangled up with him from their fall. The knife, it was just out of his reach…if only he could reach it.

The pirate seemed to have regained himself somewhat and his hands latched around Christian's throat, squeezing tight. Abandoning his struggle for the dagger, the young doctor turned back to his life or death struggle and began hitting the man on the face, not enough to hurt him, just to make him let go…he didn't want to hurt him, it was against all he had learned in medical school. It was against all he believed.

The pirate smiled and spit blood onto his captive's face along with a rotted black tooth. The offending tooth bounced off Christian's cheek and he dimly heard it rattling away. Blood was pounding in his ears, his head felt like it was about to burst.

He used to thing that hanging was the only way to deal with people like the man now killing him but he wasn't so sure. This was an awful way to die and, even though the people who did go like this were pirates, kin of this man now, he still felt it somewhere deep down that it was wrong.

Christian's eyes were going black and he ceased struggling. He'd given up, he'd let this man have him. Dazedly, he started wondering what death would be like, what all the pain of the world disappearing in the blink of an eye would feel like. He'd get to see his brother and…

A loud bang and a cheer rose up on deck, the many voices magnifying it. Something good had happened above. There was again a loud smashing of wood and a loud, long, ear splitting male scream.

The pirate let Christian's neck go and the young doctor sucked in life, glorious life, coughing and sputtering on the ground. His drive to live strengthened him as he curled into a little broken ball on the floor, the pirate walking up the stairs to peer out the door at the noise.

Coughing madly, vision blurred, Christian weakly looked up along the floor and saw the dagger. It was there, so close, if only he could reach it. He started inching his way, still in a protective ball, towards the shinning metal and his last salvation.

The pirate was coming back down the stairs; he could hear him getting closer…smell him getting closer. Someone suddenly grabbed his ankle and Christian reached out desperately, clawing the air for the dagger. His fingertips brushed the metal before he was yanked backwards. Without thinking, he rolled over and kicked as hard as he could with his free hand. His boot cracked across solid bone and there was a loud crack as the pirate's nose broke.

The man staggered away, clutching his face as blood spurted between his fingers and down his hands as beads onto his arms. He hit the stairs blindly and fell over, thumping down them to come to a rest at the bottom, moaning.

Christian rolled back to his stomach and shimmied along the corridor, trying to get to the dagger before the pirate was up and at it again. He didn't have long before a growling voice came to his ear and a blood hand grabbed the back of his hair.

"Where do you think you're going, mate? Done with our little game." Christian felt his hand close on cold steel as the pirate pulled him to his feet and threw him against the far wall. His head hit the wood and bounced back with such a force, Christian lost all his senses and, when he regained them, he found himself lying on his back, the bigger man bringing his head forward and back into the floor with startling force.

He was about to lose consciousness when his hand found strength and he brought it down into the pirate's shoulder. The man cried out in surprise and dropped Christian as the doctor's hand came around again and sliced into the man's cheek.

The pirate only had time to stare at the blood spilling to the ground before Christian launched a new attack. "Not tired yet." He kicked the man in the chest sending him sprawling to the ground and then jumped onto him, bringing the knife down again and again. When he finally fell to exhaustion, Christian was surprised to see the man beneath him dead.

Angry tears had spilled down his cheeks but had long since abaited and now were dried streaks through blood and dirt. He sat there, staring down at the lifeless body, a life he had just taken. He'd dealt with death, many deaths. He'd dealt with family loss, patient loss but somehow this was all much, much worse.

He pulled the dagger from the man's chest and was sickened. He'd killed him…he'd killed him. More tears spilled down his face, not angry but fearful. He was sick of himself and sick of the whole world. He looked up at the stairs above where there was only the sound of sword fighting.

Without knowing what to do, Christian rolled off the man and went to the wall, huddling against it and pulling his legs up close to him, chin resting on his knees as he stared blankly at the opposite wall. Slowly, darkness encompassed him and his last conscious thought was he'd killed, not a pirate but a person and he'd have to pay for that. Someday, he would pay.

Elizabeth watched Jack's body fall over this side of the railing and screamed, letting go with one hand and reaching out to him as a cry rose on the deck. The enemy was cheering at something. Instead of grabbing her hand, he clawed viciously at the ship as he slipped and managed to hook his fingers over an extra cable at the side. Holding on tightly, his eyes fell to the black water below and then rose to her.

"Hold on Jack!" Elizabeth yelled. "Hold on, I'm coming." She continued her climb and vaulted the railing, running to the spot where he held on below. Leaning over the railing, she reached out her hands for him. Jack stared up at her. "Grab my hands!"

Slowly, one hand hanging onto the cable, he reached up and tried to grab her hand. They were to far away from each other. "I can't reach!" Jack yelled giving up and holding onto the cable.

Elizabeth looked around her to the melee on the deck. No one had noticed her yet. Looking back down, she leaned on the railing and allowed her body to fall further over the swirling water and the helpless pirate trapped on the rigging. Reaching out, she held her hand for him but he didn't take it. "Give me you're hand!" Jack didn't look up at her but was watching the water below as though calculating how far down it was. "Jack, I need your help up here. Don't let go! Maybe you can climb up?"

Jack's eyes moved over the side of the ship and he shook his head. "No way, luv. No handholds." Elizabeth bit her lip and shook her offered hand.

"Just try and reach." She screamed. Suddenly, Will appeared at her shoulder, his hand reaching down to. Jack stared up at them both as if they had completely lost their senses.

"Norrington's waiting up here Jack." Will called, smiling. "He's going to be disappointed if you don't make it. He really wants to hang you."

"Wouldn't want to disappoint him." Jack answered blandly, his voice just audible over the raging battle. Will smiled and reach out further, his hand extending past where Elizabeth could reach. Slowly, Jack's hand rose and gripped Will's wrist. Will began to haul the pirate up but, a flash of steel hit the deck between Will and Elizabeth.

Will turned as Elizabeth screamed and jumped away. A man with greasy black hair and a wandering eye smiled at them and tipped his hat. "Good evening." He said. He pulled his sword from the wood and whipped it at Will. Will let go of Jack and lunged to the side. Elizabeth jumped forward just as Jack's hand slipped on the railing and she grabbed him, halting his fall.

Helping him up over the railing, she grabbed him tightly, forgetting all her senses and hugged him, holding him as if he were an anchor. Jack tensed under her unexpected show of affection and, after a few seconds, praised her off.

"Where did Will…" He started but the young blacksmith stopped him.

"Here. That guy was easy." Will stated, straightening his shirt. He smiled at Jack and then grabbed his wife, holding her shaking body close to him.

"Better be careful Will." Jack said, watching them. "I met yet take her away from you." Will laughed. Will looked around at the battle and his eyes found the stairway at the far end. Had Christian even come up?

"I have to go, Elizabeth come on." He started off but stopped and grabbed Jack's arm. "Be careful." Jack cocked an eyebrow.

"Careful? Careful's my middle name." He said simply. Will let out a weird noise and took off, across the deck with Elizabeth.

Bill ducked under another pirate's blow and came up underneath the man's guard, sinking his sword into the man's gut. Not even watching to see if the man fell, he met his neck opponent and his partner. He allowed their lust to kill him outweigh their good sense and soon he was behind the casket.

There lay Ethan Barbossa, panting and clutching his leg which stuck out at an odd angle. Bill stared at the crumpled form below him. He looked so weak and helpless.

"You…are going…to die." Ethan growled through hissing breaths. Bill nodded.

"After you." He said, raising his sword. Ethan's call stilled his hand. He was calling for his brother. Bill's confusion turned to the casket, his eyes widening. It was empty. There was no body there…

Anamaria circled back around the table, leaving the door clear and forcing a laugh from Marko. "I knew you were to smart for that." He said, lowering his sword and watching her. "So, like vultures we circle again and again until one of us is outweighed by hunger and foolishly attacks." Anamaria raised a slim black eyebrow.

"Poetry. I didn't figure you for the sort." Marko laughed but it sounded more like a dry cackle and sent chills up and down Anamaria's spine.

"You still harbor animosity towards me, after all I've done for you?" Marko asked. Now it was Anamaria's turn to laugh.

"What have you done for me? You took away my husband and my life."

"I took away a life you were never intended to lead." Marko spat, his sword still lowered. "I took away the rubbish and helped you to start anew. You attack me for that?"

"Start anew?" Anamaria asked, her eyes squeezing together in a full on glare. "You took away the man I loved."

"But you love again." Marko pointed out and Anamaria's heart clenched. She loved Jack but it was a confusing love. "I steered you on the right course."

"I was going to have a family, I was married, I was…"

"Jack was married." Marko said and Anamaria stopped, staring at him as her knees almost gave way. "Her name was Emily and they loved each other very much."

"You're lying." Anamaria hissed as Marko circled the table and began walking towards her. She couldn't make her legs move. She didn't know why this came as such a shock to her but it did. "You're lying."

"Am I? Am I really? They have a child together. Her name is Morgan." Anamaria shook her head and stepped back. "He was the stranger, who watched your husband die. He stood there and watched. I know you figured this out but…" Marko was now close enough to kill her but his hand stayed down. "I know you don't want to hear this."

"A child?" Anamaria whispered, staring up at Marko through tear filled eyes. "Morgan?"

"She'll be nearing maturity ay time now." Marko answered. "She's beautiful. Looks like her father with long dark hair and high cheekbones. He abandoned her, like he'll abandon you."

Anamaria shook her head, her body quaking. This wasn't true. He was trying to get a rise out of her. "How is this right course?" She whispered, more to herself then him. Marko smiled.

"You'll see Annie. You'll see." She looked up through tear filled eyes and then launched herself at him, knocking his sword away and trying to find an opening. He dogged hers and soon they were back in the other room, her sword whipping through the air with such force she often overbalanced.

Marko wouldn't let her have an inch and soon exhaustion set in, all her moves automatic and predictable. "I love your rage Anamaria. You will be right for the purposes I have sought out for you." Anamaria gave one finally swing and overbalanced totally, colliding with the bed. Before she knew it, Marko slammed on the back of her head and darkness encompassed her.

Norrington sidestepped Barbossa and came in behind him but the dead corpse…or whatever the hell he was, was too quick and soon Norrington was again fighting air. The moment he'd watched Jack whiz through the air he'd engaged the creature in battle but it seemed to be a losing cause.

His whole body ached. Not to long ago he'd tripped over something and three men had been on him. Now, this creature was being stubborn. The enemy had cried out in triumph when he had risen again but Norrington cringed.

A call from the far side of the ship met his ears and Norrington looked to the casket where the call had floated from. Bill Turner stood there, looking exactly like his son and watched the casket intently. Norrington hissed under his breath. Barbossa wasn't in there, he was right here.

Hearing the call, the creature turned and Norrington raised his sword, sinking it through the chest bone. Pieces of white bone flew in all directions and fell like rain onto the deck at the creature's feet. Not knowing what was about to happen, Norrington stood there and watched, astonished as Barbossa pulled the blade out and turned to Norrington.

With lightning quickness, the blade came down and sank through Norrington's torso. He gagged, stepping back and Barbossa pulled the sword from his stomach, watching him. He grabbed the front of Norrington's jacket as the Commodore staggered and held him close.

"Now, leave me alone." Barbossa threw him to the ground and Norrington lay there, looking up at the night sky as small grey clouds moved here and there. He was about to die. As he lay there in shock, the face of an angel descended over him.

Elizabeth moved across the deck with Will, towards the stairs. She was watching the deck around them, heart in her throat as it raised a mile a minute. The battle was dying down; the warrior women were taking care of almost all the pirates.

Her eyes fell across Jack who was rolling across the deck, away from a large ferity man with a bloody sword. Gillette was fighting four men at once and doing remarkably well. Anamaria and Christian were missing but she could see Gibbe fighting three men, back to back with Alinasa and Bill was behind the crate. She was about to turn back to Jack when her eyes hit James. He was standing there with a sword threw his stomach.

Elizabeth screamed making Will turn, sword in hand and look around for the cause of his wife's distress. "What is it?" Elizabeth felt blind panic gripping her. Norrington had now fallen and a corpse was walking away. Elizabeth stared, the corpse was Barbossa, she was sure of it. He was moving off towards the casket and Bill.

Elizabeth took off across the deck, away from her husband who was now rushing for his father. She slid on James's blood and fell to her knees, pulling him into her arms. He was pale and his eyes closing even as she watched but he stared at her for a moment and then smiled.

"Elizabeth." He whispered. Elizabeth ran her fingers through his sweat soaked brown hair and smiled. Dimly, in the back of her mind, she couldn't help but stare in awe at him without his wig. "I'm sorry…"

"Sshhh. For what? There's nothing for me to forgive you for James. You did everything you could." James shook his head and coughed up blood. Elizabeth felt tears sting her eyes and she let them come, there was no way she'd be able to hide them.

"I'm sorry for…for years ago when, I almost…made you marry me." Elizabeth's brow furrowed.

"You didn't make me." She whispered. James rolled his eyes.

"Yes I did. I just…loved you. I still do." Elizabeth shook her head and stroked his cheek.

"I love you. Just not in that way." James nodded and his eyes rolled towards the direction she had come. He was looking for Will. "It'll be okay, I promise." He shook his head and coughed again, shivering.

Elizabeth looked around the deck and spotted Alinasa near by. She twirled on the spot, descending over a man who screamed out and then was quickly silenced as her body encompassed him. When she pushed him away, he fell to the ground as a crumpled heap of ash and dust. Frightened, Elizabeth watched her until Alinasa turned and met her eye. Slowly and gracefully she came forward.

"Help him." Elizabeth said, watching the women through pleading eyes. Alinasa glared at her and then shook her head. "Why?"

"I don't do that." She said simply, her calm voice showing clearly a hint of dislike. Elizabeth swallowed and stood, letting James rest on the deck. She stepped around him and came to meet the warrior face to face.

"You help him or I'll make sure you spend the rest of eternity, haunting that little island." Elizabeth growled. She didn't know how she'd do this, wasn't even sure what Alinasa would do. She'd seen this woman encompass Will's soul, seen her just now take down a full grown man and turn him to ash with a single embrace. Alinasa breathed out slowly and then dropped to the deck beside James. Elizabeth didn't even turn to watch as a glow lit up behind her.

Gillette and Gibbs had intercepted Barbossa after Norrington's fall. Bill watched them dimly for a moment and then looked down at Ethan who was still lying crushed at his feet. Bill smiled.

"I'll let those women have you." He said, smiling evilly. "They do love to eat up your soul. You know that only to well, don't you Ethan." Barbossa smiled and looked up at him, though his ugly features were lit by pain.

"You'd know about lost souls Bill Turner." Ethan answered. Bill lifted his foot and slammed it down onto Ethan's leg. Ethan cried out which only made Barbossa's moves more frenzied.

"Your brother has a heart left," Bill muttered, watching the men battling the corpse. "Nice to see."

Just then Will joined him and grabbed his father's arm. Bill spun around and smiled, still keeping his foot firmly on Ethan's leg.

"I thought you could use my help." He said. Bill shook his head.

"No, I have everything under control. So does your wife." He nodded to Elizabeth who was now pulling Norrington to his feet, Alinasa sweeping away behind her, looking sour. Will stared; Elizabeth never ceased to surprise him. "Go look for Jack's female companion and that doctor. They're missing. All the men are gone now, practically and I've got everything under control here." He ground his foot down making Ethan cry out again. "Go." Will stepped away slowly and then began to run along the deck towards his wife. Bill watched him go, dimly aware that at any time now, Barbossa would be here. One way or the other.

Jack staggered and tripped over his own feet, cursing. Slowly, he crawled to his feet and began walking again. There was really no one left to fight, except Barbossa and Jack's back and shoulders screamed from the thought.

He was just about to stumble off towards Bill when he heard a moan behind him. Mulan lay at the base of the main mast, his body bent around the round wood. He had clearly broken his back and, as Jack watched, he took in a gasping breath.

Jack couldn't just kill him like this, it wouldn't be fair. Taking a deep breath, he looked around the deck for one of the warriors. Morliana was nearby and Jack called to her. She turned and watched him through black eyes.

"I need your help." He called. Morliana walked forward. Jack pointed to Mulan. "I need you to heal him." Morliana looked at him funny and, with a motionless mouth, answered.

"Help him? I thought you were to fight him." Jack cringed as he voice echoed in his head.

"No, I didn't get to fight him. Help him so I can!" Morliana frowned at his outburst.

"If you're sure." She answered. Jack nodded.

"I'm very, very sure." Jack answered.

TO MY REVEIWERS:

**Forceflow 46: **Ouch, bad day huh? That sux but, on the bright side, it blizzarded all winter (blizzarded isn't a word). I hope you're having a better day now.

**Padme 17: **Keep up the ickiness? Ok then, I will. I hope you liked this chapter, it was kind of gross in some parts, I have a sick mind today. Yeah, Barbossa is back and he's not very happy. He didn't get enough sleep.

**Toxic-Beetle:** Ana and Jack are my favorite. I hope they have Ana in the second movie. That would suck if they took her out, hey? LOL, yeah old Barbossa is back and mad.

And to anyone i may have left out, thank you and i'm sorry.


	30. Jack's Head

This chapter I had to cut down because, in its entirety, it ended up being like…10 pages. So I cut it in half. I make a lot of references to Jack's head in this one, for which head, see title, and so thus I named it that. Anyway, enjoy. I really like this chapter for some reason.

Chapter 30 Jack's head (the one on his neck for all you sick people!)

Slowly, Mulan got to his feet and Jack heard the cracks and snaps of his back as he straightened up. Picking up a fallen sword from the deck, Jack threw it Mulan and then took his stance, waiting for the other man's attack.

"You know what I did with your woman, Jack?" He hissed. Jack tried to block out his voice but it kept wiggling into his mind. "I laid her down on my bed…" Jack felt his anger rising, "And we…"

Jack growled and launched himself at Mulan, knocking him into the mast again. Mulan brought his hand up and across Jack's cheek. The right side of his face became a mass of pain, his eye going black. Without wavering, though, Jack managed to get low and bowl Mulan over. They hit the deck hard and Jack could feel Mulan's fists pounding on his back.

All his anger had welled up inside him and finally it burst, sending his fist down again and again, hitting Mulan everywhere he could. Somewhere, between defending himself and hitting Jack back, Mulan managed to get him off and their swords were between them.

Mulan faked a left but Jack didn't fall for it and met him on his right side. They spun and Mulan threw Jack back as hard as he could. Jack tripped over his feet and landed on his back, hard. Mulan was on him in and instant. As Jack lifted his sword to defend himself, Mulan kicked it aside. It skidded away across the deck and hit the railing at the far end. Mulan brought his sword down, and the tip rested under Jack's chin.

"So, Jack. This is how it will all end." Mulan growled. Jack glared up at him.

"No." Jack answered. "It will never end. Not for you and not for me. This will last forever." Mulan's eyes clouded over in confusion for a second. "Because, when I die, I will haunt you for the rest of your life and we will fight again. The moment you die, I will personally send you to the lowest place in hell you'll possibly get."

Mulan smiled. "Why am I not scared?" He asked. Raising his sword, he went to bring it down but Jack rolled backwards and his sword sliced down into empty air. Mulan growled. "Stay still!" He followed swiftly and sliced through the air, keeping Jack on the defensive with no way to go after his sword. He was nearly defenseless…nearly.

A rope hung from the mast, whipping in the wind. Jack ran for it and grabbed it, swinging around the mast as Mulan's sword buried into it. With his feet up, he rounded the mast and slammed into Mulan who went wheeling into the railing. Jack pulled the sword out of the mast and came around to meet Mulan who had Jack's fallen sword out and waiting.

Mulan charged and Jack met him, their blows hitting so hard, the jarring force rattled up their arms. Mulan pushed Jack hard into the mast, hoping to get the advantage but, as he swung Jack ducked and brought his sword up inside Mulan's guard, slicing into his arm. Mulan cried out and wheeled back. With out thinking, Jack brought his sword up and sunk it into Mulan's gut. As Mulan slid off his sword and hit the ground, Jack dropped to his knees beside the man and pulled his face over so he could see Jack.

"It was you, wasn't it?" Jack asked. Mulan's brow wrinkled in pain and confusion. "You scared the horse." Mulan smiled and blood leaked from his mouth and down his face.

"You drink to get rid of the images." Mulan snarled. "I tried to kill you to rid me of mine." His eyes widened and Jack saw a flash out of the corner of his eye as a dagger sunk into his back. With the last of his strength, Mulan grabbed the back of Jack's head and brought it forward. "I failed." Mulan growled. Suddenly, his eyes glazed over and his head hit the deck…dead.

Jack scrambled back and tried to reach the knife but he couldn't. Pain raced up and down his back but he knew it wasn't fatal; Mulan hadn't been strong enough to embed it to deep.

Suddenly, Gibbs hit the deck beside him, thrown by Barbossa. He shook his head and looked up at his captain. "Gibbs." Jack gasped, turning so Gibbs could see his back. "Pull it out." Gibbs stared at him, speechless and then got up, reaching out. He grabbed he hilt of the dagger but didn't do anything. "Gibbs, pull it out, now!" Gibbs wrenched the dagger from his back and Jack clenched his teeth, taking the blood knife from him and tucking it into the sash around his waist.

Turning, he saw Barbossa had got past Gillette who wasn't moving, the skeleton making his way towards Bill.

"I want you to look after Gillette." Jack demanded. Gibbs looked like he was having the same thought Jack was, disbelief that he would ever in his right mind, or out, look after a navy man. "I have to go help Bill."

Gibbs nodded. As Jack struggled to his feet, the other man grabbed his arm. "Watch yourself, Jack. You owe me a bottle of rum." Jack smiled.

"Minus the ones you owe me." He replied. With that, Jack was gone, wending his way across the almost enemy free deck. Gibbs watched him go and then turned to Gillette who was waking up.

Bill cringed at the smell of rotting flesh permeating from the corpse of his former captain. The smell wafted through the air, so thick he could almost see it making him gag.

Barbossa growled, standing over his brother and a soft chuckle came from his bony throat. "Can't you stay dead?" He asked. Bill raised his sword in defense, knowing it was no good, and smiled evilly while nerves caused his teeth to chatter.

"Obviously neither of us can." He said. Barbossa stepped forward and Bill swung the sword out. The skeleton caught it easily in his hand, the metal embedding in bone and shot out a fist, catching Bill's shoulder. There was a loud snap and Bill stumbled back, letting his sword go. Barbossa had just dislocated his shoulder. His right arm hung uselessly at his side and, seeing as it was his sword arm, he was now defenseless.

Barbossa flung the sword carelessly away, the spinning object narrowly missing Jack as he ran towards them. Jack stopped; brow furrowed and watched it hit the deck as though it were a woman who had just slapped him. Turning brown eyes back to his brother, Jack stepped around the casket and stood shoulder to injured shoulder with Bill.

"I believe you could use some help." Jack said. Bill grimaced and then laughed lightly.

"Where were you fourteen years ago when I was being strapped to a cannon?" Bill asked. Jack glared at him.

"I was on a little island, dying and plotting my revenge. You really have nothing to complain about." Jack answered swiftly. Bill grinned and pointed to his arm.

"Nothing to complain about? Do you have a limb that doesn't work?" Bill growled. Jack nodded and glanced at Barbossa. That look held a hidden message only two brothers could pick up. They were going to spring and Jack was going to give the signal but that could be anything.

"My head." Jack answered. Bill nodded, "See, you really have nothing to complain about do…"

"Will you both shut up?" Barbossa growled. The two brothers turned their attention to the skeleton before them. During their argument, Barbossa had managed to pull Ethan to his one good leg.

"Excuse me?" Jack said in mock irritation. "We haven't seen each other in years, thanks you." Barbossa, though he had no eyes, was obviously shooting daggers at them. "Now…"

"Now?" Bill asked. "What now?" Jack grabbed his dislocated arm lightly.

"Now!" Jack screamed, launching himself across the deck. He grabbed Barbossa around the rib cage while Bill hit Ethan. Unfortunately, the brittle bones were not as brittle as they looked and Barbossa didn't move. Stepping back and gripping his now very soar shoulder, Jack stared at the skeleton who started to laugh.

"Oh Jack." Barbossa whispered. "Now, how could you think that would work?" Jack smiled weakly.

"I'm…sorry?" He asked. Barbossa shook his head and growled like a madman, running at Jack who had nothing else he could do but run.

Elizabeth felt a hand on her shoulder but before she could turn, Norrington stepped in front of her. "James!" She whispered, grabbing him and pulling him into a tight hug. Her eyes wandered the deck and she found Will watching her.

"Elizabeth…" Norrington pulled away gently, his cheeks glowing red. "I mean, Mrs. Turner." He turned to Will, nodded to him and then looked back at Elizabeth. "Go help your husband."

There was no sadness in his voice, no disappointment…only love. Elizabeth couldn't believe he could still love her after what she had done to him. "Are you going to be okay?" She asked. Norrington smiled and nodded.

"Go." He begged. Elizabeth nodded, kissed his cheek and then walked towards Will. She didn't hear Norrington's soft reply, "We'll both be okay." Elizabeth grabbed her husband and kissed him. They'd survived. Only a few crew members were left to fight and after that they'd all be able to go home.

Will pulled away. "We have to find Anamaria and Christian." He said. Elizabeth nodded and looked past him to the door leading to the lower decks. "Down there." She said. Will shook his head.

"I came up from there with Christian and my…my dad. Why would he be…" Elizabeth shook her head. It was simply women's intuition. "Okay…"

Elizabeth grabbed his hand and cautiously opened the door. There were candles low in the brackets below and two indistinct shapes at the bottom of the stairs. One lay spread eagle and the other was hunched near the wall. Opening the door farther and letting the moonlight cascade down the steps, she gasped.

"Christian!" She whispered, letting Will's hand go and running down the steps. She jumped over the dead man on the floor and knelt beside Christian. There was blood flowing down his face from a gash on his head and large purple bruises were rising under his right eye, jaw and left cheek. She carefully pulled him into her arms and looked up at Will who was checking over the pirate.

"He's dead." Will announced. "How's he?" Elizabeth shook her head and smoothed back Christian's hair. His eyes fluttered and then he groaned.

"I killed him." Christian muttered, opening his eyes and squinting at her. "I killed him…" Elizabeth shook her head and kissed his forehead. "No, I did…"

"It wasn't your fault." Elizabeth said soothingly. Christian shook his head and moaned. "Where are you hurt?"

"I think my ankle…sprained." Will gently probed Christian's ankle and the young doctor sucked in a large gulp of air. "Mr. Turner…"

"Will." Will said simply. "You can call me Will."

Christian nodded and lifted his hand shakily. "Remove my boot, please." Will unlaced the boot as gently as he could and slid it off the doctor's swelling ankle. "Elizabeth, if you could help me sit up…" Elizabeth gently helped Christian into a sitting position against the wall. "Okay, now with both hands, I need you to press on the sides of my ankle and if you feel anything shirt then it's broken." Will did as he was told but he didn't feel anything. "Okay, that's good."

"What do we do now?" Elizabeth asked. Christian closed his eyes, breathing heavily.

"I need you to make a bandage and put it over my forehead…and don't let me sleep." Christian said. Elizabeth looked at him confused. "I think I have a head injury." Will laughed and looked up at Elizabeth who giggled.

"Maybe you should talk to Jack about that." Will said. Christian stared at him, uncomprehendingly. "That man has a constant head injury." Christian smiled and leaned against the wall.

TO MY REVIEWERS:

CHAPTER 28

DragonHunter200: Hey man, yeah it was Jack. Battle scenes are my favorite to write because I get an idea in my head about how they should be. Writing them is hard though and I tend to rush through them at times. Barbossa was always one scary looking dude. Lol.

CHAPTER 29

KMSOrligirl: Two nights reading it? I'm honored but I must admit it takes me longer to read one this long! Lol, thank you for finding it. Yes, I am from Canada, I live in the middle of Canada in Saskatchewan which is the easiest province to draw but the hardest to spell. Lol. You're from Wisconsin? I had a friend from there, I don't know which city or anything, I don't remember. P.S. Vancouver Canada is really pretty and so is Victoria in B.C. If you want to move to Canada look there first. I hope you got my e-mails on the Lord of the Rings and Harry Potter fan fics.

Toxic-Beetle: What will happen to Ana and Bill? Humm…well, Ana won't come in until the next chapter, I just couldn't fit her in but you'll be happy and hopefully a little surprised. And yes, Jack has a daughter named Morgan. You'll meet her in the sequel…coming soon.

Forceflow46: Hey! That sucks about work, eh? Yeah, it's been snowing here for the past three days…really hard. It sucks; I have play practice tonight and can't go because of the weather. The showdown between Jack and Barbossa? They need a showdown? No, I'm kidding, I already wrote it and I think you'll like it a lot, I'm very proud of the showdown. Norry is starting to see Jack different, but you'll see what he does about it in a little bit. Yes, the sequel will be coming soon and I'll probably put up chapter one the day I put up the final chapter on this story. I hope you don't mind but I called Barbossa Daniel in the next chapter. You gave me the idea and I was wondering if I could have your permission? Thanks.

Padme17: lol, yeah, lack of sleep can do that to a dead guy. Breaking bones and bloodiness? Yeah, all that is fun and all. It would be great to have Morliana and her gang around for a while, and then when my klutzy nature comes into effect they can help me. Then again, taking over bodies and the fact they are dead would be a little off putting. I liked the thing about Mr. Clean. That was great.

And to anyone else I may have missed, thank you. To all you who read and don't review, thank you also.


	31. Swimming Angel

I just want to thank you again to forceflow46 for Barbossa's name. I hope you don't mind that I used it, it's just it was a really good idea.

Chapter 31: Swimming Angel

Bill slammed Ethan to the ground and managed to get his hands around the other's throat, squeezing off his breath. Ethan reached up and hit Bill as hard as he could on his dislocated shoulder. Bill cried out and rolled off, lying on the deck panting and clutching his arm.

Ethan managed to roll over and raised a knife above Bill's head. Bill reached out with his left hand and grabbed Ethan's wrist, trying desperately to bring it down but Bill knew this was not his day to go. If Jack got Barbossa, then Bill would take the next best thing. Barbossa had taken Bill's brother from him; it was just an eye for an eye.

Bill wrenched Ethan's arm sideways and heard the satisfying snap of bone. Ethan cried out and clutched his wrist as Bill pulled himself to his feet and picked up his fallen sword with his left hand. Hovering over the other pirate, Bill held the sword to his neck.

"I'll see you in hell." He growled, bringing the sword down.

Jack raced as fast as he could across the deck, keeping only a few steps ahead of Barbossa. The other's putrid smell seemed to be everywhere, like it was a bad perfume. Passing Gibbs who was helping Gillette sit up, Jack leapt over three bodies in one go and found himself at the railing.

Turning with no where else to go but left or right, Barbossa bore down on him menacingly. The skeleton stopped and grabbed Jack's neck, the other having just decided to go left.

"Look." Jack choked. "I'm sure we can come to some sort of arrangement…" Barbossa shook his head, grip tightening. Suddenly, over the pounding of blood in his ears, Jack could hear Bill's voice.

"Daniel!" He called. Jack was slightly confused. Who the bloody hell was Daniel? "Over here. I have a present for you." Barbossa dropped Jack who staggered into the railing, coughing and clutching his throat. The skeleton turned and stared at Bill who held Ethan's head up by the hair. Jack grinned, one down…damn the Barbossa and their Devil spawn.

Bill lifted the head high above his own and threw it as hard as he could. The head spun through the air and hit Barbossa in the bony chest. The skeleton took a step back and Jack realized his predicament to late. As Barbossa stepped back, he knocked into Jack who fell backwards over the railing, grabbing the only thing he could. Barbossa and Jack tumbled head over heels into the cold black abyss below.

With a loud splash and loud rushing in his ears, Jack found himself underneath the water with Barbossa holding his brother's head in one hand and Jack's shirt in the other.

No matter how he looked at it, Jack hadn't ever been in a worse fix. Sure he had been marooned but he'd had rum. Sure he'd been surrounded by Navy men but they were all in Port Incompetent Royal…there had been the Spanish guys but who cared about them and Will, that could have given him a heart attack. He'd survived Barbossa once before with the cursed gold and he'd been hung…fallen off a battlement.

Barbossa looked happy though…because he couldn't drown to death. But Jack could and this thing was counting on it.

Will heard his father's cry and looked up at the doorway. He'd thought he'd heard 'Daniel'.

"Go." Elizabeth said. She was holding Christian upright, talking calmly to him. "I'll keep him awake, we'll be okay." Will nodded and took off up the stairs. The deck was lit up from the moonlight above and he could clearly see across the deck, Barbossa holding a head in his arms, Jack behind him. Barbossa took a step back, knocked into Jack and they both tumbled over the railing.

"No!" Will screamed, racing across the deck. He slammed into the deck and looked over the edge to see the foaming black see beneath him. As his father came to his side, the white bubbles dispersed and left only a glassy surface. Jack and Barbossa were gone.

"Where are they?" Bill yelled, panicking. Will's eyes desperately tried to pierce the water but he couldn't see anything. Norrington was suddenly at his shoulder and Gibbs, supporting Gillette, showed up later but still no one surfaced.

"I'm going in." Norrington said blandly, taking off his coat. Will looked at him blankly. This man was going to go in after Jack, a man he had not only tried to kill but a pirate and mortal enemy?

"No." Said a female voice. They all turned in surprise to see Morliana and the other women standing behind them, watching. Morliana motioned to the others. "We set this evil out into the world, we will bring it home."

With no other words, the women pushed roughly past the men, stepped up onto the railing and dived into the water. The men crowded back around and stared into the water. They had made no splash and no ripples on the ebony surface…all was quiet.

Jack pulled at the arm holding him to his death as hard as he could but he knew it would do no good. Barbossa was to strong. Jack let his arms fall and stared at the pits were eyes should be. They were hollow and deep, seeming to stretch forever in the dark.

His eyes moved up to the air above. He could see nothing but the shimmering water and suddenly wondered how deep they were. Anamaria, how would he explain it to her…well, he wouldn't it would have to be Will or Bill and that thought wasn't encouraging. Will could barely string two words together…

As he stared at the water above him, a glimmer of white caught his eye. A woman was cutting through the water quickly, her clinging white dress and skin glowing a soft white. Jack blinked. He had to be hallucinating…

It was Morliana and her warriors. Morliana reached out and grabbed him with one hand, her other hand resting on Barbossa's arm. The skeleton let go of Jack and the other women swarmed him, their white glow suddenly lighting up the water around him. Jack stared but soon it was like trying to look into the sun and he closed his eyes.

Morliana's lips suddenly closed over his own as bubbles spread over his body. Jack opened his eyes and pulled away, glancing into the bright light beside him. The bubbles were pouring out of it, like when Giselle would blow into her water through a straw.

Morliana's soft hand on his face brought him back and she again pressed her lips to his, forcing his mouth open with her tongue. A blast of air filled his lungs as she breathed for him. They were raising slowly, the light beside them, Morliana breathing into him and allowing him a few minutes free to exhale before she did it again.

The surface hit him cold and clean a few minutes later and he pulled away, gulping in the fresh air. Morliana pushed him roughly towards the ship and they swam off to the light, the bubbles around it growing to be as big as Jack and threatening to swallow him whole.

"Jack!" Will screamed over the popping noises of the bubbles and the rough slapping of the waves they made hitting the deck. "Hold on, we'll get you up!"

Jack waved vaguely at him but his eyes stayed on the ball of white now hovering above the water. The women had turned into streaks of mist and now circled Barbossa who was glowing green.

Barbossa was screaming, his voice piercing every nerve in Jack's body. As his voice reached such a pitch that Jack's ears almost hurt the mist's circle closed and there was silence.

Jack had now witnessed Barbossa die twice and he seriously hoped this would be the last. It was starting to get tiring. The spirits dived towards the water, hovered over it and then shaped themselves back into women. One of them, one Jack would never forget, came forward and grabbed Jack beneath the arms, lifting him easily into the air. They lifted smoothly upwards and onto the ship's deck.

The woman set him down and leaned into him, pulling his face forward and kissing him softly. When she pulled away, she placed one hand on his stomach and the other on his cheek. "I'm sorry about killing you, Jack." She said. "Honestly." Then she walked away and joined the other women in the middle of the deck.

Morliana stepped away as Alinasa joined them and smiled at Jack, then Will. "Release us." She said. Jack was confused.

"Excuse me?" He asked. Morliana held out her hand and handed him the bottle. Inside liquid still sloshed around.

"We give it to you, use it well." She said. "Now release us." Jack reached out a hand and took hers.

"You're released." He said. Morliana smiled and turned. The women followed her as she crossed the deck and stepped off the edge. Running to the railing, the men watched the women cross the water and step back onto the island, they could just see their white silhouettes in the moonlight.

"Who's that?" Norrington asked, pointing to the other end of the beach. There was another shape moving towards the warriors, a man. Jack leaned on the railing, holding the bottle of elixir close to his chest.

"Rauol Markling." He answered, looking over at the Commodore. "Morliana's long lost love." He turned away, not bothering to watch their reuniting and began searching the deck while wringing out his hair. "Has anyone seen Anamaria?"

The others shook their heads, still watching the beach. Jack sighed and crossed the deck, pushing into the only place no one had looked.

There, on the floor of the captain's cabin was Anamaria. She was lying on her side on the floor, blood from a gash on her cheek pooling around her face. Jack rushed across the room, threw the bottle on the bed and pulled her into his arms.

"Luv?" Jack asked. Anamaria's eyes fluttered and she looked blearily up at him. "Are you alright?"

Anamaria pulled out of his arms and looked wildly around. "Where's Marko?" She asked. Jack looked around the dark room to and noticed the large window in the kitchen wide open.

"He's gone." Jack said. "And so are a few of Barbossa's crew." Anamaria turned and stared at him. "They ran away from the battle." He stood up and pulled her to her feet. "Come on luv."

"Anamaria." Ana growled but allowed him to give her a hand.

"We have to find him." Anamaria said, tears welling in her eyes and falling down her cheeks. "We have to find him…" Then she broke down completely. Jack stood there awkwardly, staring at her and then he grabbed her, pulling her into a tight hug.

TO MY REVEIWERS:

OpraNoodlemantra: Hey. I was so honored by your review; it made me smile and turn red! You've been sitting there most of the day reading it! Wow, that's a lot to read! Wow, I don't have much to say in reply to your review because I'm smiling to much. Lol. I really wanted a relationship between Jack and Ana because I thought they would be perfect together. The Bill and Jack brother thing I just came up with while writing so, it threw me for a loop to. Well, Jack's past will be gone through in the sequel mainly, the little 'slip' about Jack's life before is to set it up for a sequel. Thank you for reading this and I hope you stick with it and the sequel.

KMSOrligirl: LOL, your welcome, and it's okay, I have blond moments all the time. I love writing battle scenes. I lay there at night and go over them like a movie in my head, then I write them out so I'm glad you liked it. Yeah, I love Morliana and the other Indian women, they are so weird to write though. You want to visit Saskatchewan? It's not as flat as everyone thinks but you can watch your dog run away on a clear day for 3 days (so everyone from here tells people, but it's a joke). You can see for miles though. I want to go everywhere in the United States, I just like to travel. Keep reading and reviewing.

Forceflow46: Rain! We got snow…blizzards. I'm glad your looking forward to the new story. I hope you got me email about the guy you work with, if you didn't just tell me. I'm so glad to have Daniel for the name now, even if I wont use it long. Thanks again. I don't know why ppl make Barbossa's laugh Muh ha ha ha ha…it's weird.

Toxic-Beetle: Thanks! I can't just kill Barbossa, it's fun to have a skeleton walking around. He's dead now though but, he was always dead…No Jack has bad luck. Keep reading and reviewing.

Padme17: I love Jack's head to, no matter how gooey his brains are. Thanks for the review! Yeah, I wanted this to be a lighter chapter and to show Jack and Bill's love for each other and humor a little more. I donno if he was an ass in this chappie but trying to kill Jack could count, eh? Lol, yes I'm from Canada and I loved the stereotype. Funny things is, I do say eh a lot so…lol. Where are u from in Texas?


	32. The Final Chapter

Hey everyone! This is it, the last chapter, as indicated by it's name. The sequal has just been put up to, chapter one is waiting for you all. It's called Eulogy For An Angel and for all of you who wanted to know more about Jack's past, which I hinted at here, go on over to it! See you all there and thank you all.

Chapter 32: The Final Chapter

Anamaria stood at the bow of the Dauntless as if cut a path through the blue/green water below. Staring into the white waves crashing against the bow of the ship, she barely heard Jack's uneven walk as he made his way up behind her.

"Hello, luv." Jack said quietly, leaning on the railing. Anamaria blinked back tears and looked up at him. He was leaning on the railing, his dark brown hair flying out behind him. His red bandana was gone but, looking down, she found it stuck in the sash around his waist. In his tanned and callused hands he held a bottle…the bottle full of the rejuvenating potion. His thumbs were tracing the cracks on its side, his eyes out on the other three pirate ships, captained by members of the Navy, following close to their side.

"Jack…" He shook his head and smiled at her. "I'm sorry, for everything. I was so stupid."

"You already apologized, and I must admit, this new soft Anamaria is getting very tiring. It makes me fell icky," He gave her a very unreadable look. "We started this together, we finish it together." He held up the bottle.

Anamaria didn't answer, didn't even smile. She looked back out at the water and shook her head. "I let him get away."

"No, I did." Jack said. Anamaria couldn't bear to look at him. "I wasn't there." He laughed lightly. "Is that all that's troubling you?"

"No." Anamaria whispered. "You have a daughter, Morgan." Jack shifted and then started laughing. Anamaria finally looked up and found he'd turned and now leaned against the railing with his back to the water, staring at the mast. "It's not funny."

"I don't have a daughter." He said. "Some wench in Tortuga, she just wanted to say she'd had a kid with me." His laughter slowed and he looked back at her. "You were worried about that? Luv, you may not have noticed but I am a catch…" Now it was Anamaria's turn to laugh. Jack's smile faded. "Fine, suit yourself but…" He squinted into the sun. "Why were you so worried?"

"I'm not." Anamaria stepped away from the railing and looked around the deck. Norrington was just exiting the Captain's cabin. He spotted Jack and Anamaria and began wending his way across the deck. Anamaria grabbed Jack's arm and nodded to the Commodore.

"Oh, joy." Jack muttered. As the Commodore drew closer, he handed the bottle to Anamaria and held out his hands. "I guess your hear to arrest me?" Norrington placed a hand on Jack's hands and lowered them.

"No, actually, though believe me it would be the highlight of my life." Jack made a weird guttural sound and smiled awkwardly.

"Pretty shallow life." Jack said. Norrington ignored him.

"You're free to go." Norrington said. Jack raised an eyebrow and opened his mouth to speak but Norrington held up a hand. "Don't thank me."

"I wasn't." Jack countered. "Why the change of…mind?"

"I told you that until the moment of your death you were to serve the queen and country." He smiled. "You officially died. All charges have been dropped." Norrington turned and began walking away. Jack rocked on his feet for a moment and then stepped forward.

"Commodore!" Jack called. Norrington stopped and Jack walked forward swiftly to catch up. "I can't believe I'm having an attack of conscience but," Jack reached into his sash and pulled out a gold pocket watch, an official gold ring with a navy seal and an honorary medal. With a sigh, he handed them to Norrington.

"Oh…" Norrington fingered them fondly and looked up at the pirate who couldn't meet his eyes. "I wondered where these had gone. Is that all?"

Jack shook his head and pulled out a small gold bracelet. Norrington took it to and looked confused. "That isn't mine." He said. Jack snatched it back and stuffed it into the sash.

"Sorry, I get confused sometimes." Jack said simply. Norrington nodded.

"I'll bet." He said. He walked away across the deck and then stopped again. Turning, he pointed at Jack. "There is a rowboat being readied for you to take out into the water." He smiled blandly. "You can have your ship back." Jack nodded and watched the Commodore walk away with a small twinge of guilt. He hadn't given back the money he'd also taken.

Gillette suddenly appeared at Jack's side. He'd managed to fix his wig but it was slightly lopsided. Jack chose not to say anything and waited for the Lieutenant to speak. "I just wanted you to know," He whispered. "I would have hanged you." Jack raised an eyebrow.

"And I'm sure you'll be promoted someday." He answered. Gillett nodded and walked away swiftly, following his Commodore. Jack shook his head and grabbed Will's arm as he passed. "You can come with me to get the Pearl or stay here." He said. Will looked up at his wife who was waiting beside the far rail with Bill and smiled slightly. He turned sad eyes on Jack.

"Sorry." He said sincerely. "But, I really want to go and kiss my wife." Jack made a face and nodded. "My father could…"

"No." Jack said, shaking his head. "Your father would rather kiss you." Will laughed, clapped the pirate on the shoulder and walked away. Gibbs came up beside Jack and watched the blacksmith walk away from them.

"I'll come." He said. Jack shook his head and eyed the dark clouds coming closer to them.

"You don't like storms." He said. "This one will be a good one." With a wink, he set off across the deck towards the row boat. As he was climbing in, he felt a distinctly feminine presence behind him. Anamaria was waiting on the other side of the railing, ready to board the boat behind him.

Will looked over his shoulder and saw Jack helping Anamaria into the rowboat. Shaking his head, he turned to his wife who was smiling at him. Reaching out, he wrapped a strong hand around the back of her head and brought her forward, kissing her deeply. She didn't pull away and chastise him for being so rude in public but her mouth clamped over his and kissed him back just as hungrily. When they pulled apart, she giggled.

"Have you been to check on Christian?" Will asked. Elizabeth nodded and smiled, her hand falling on her stomach.

"He checked me over to." She said. Will raised an eyebrow. "He dosn't know what happened but…we're pregnant again!" Will laughed out loud and grabbed her, pulling her close to him. Elizabeth took in the heat of his body and laid her head on his shoulder. Looking over at her father-in-law she blushed. "Do you wish to be alone with your father for a while?"

Will shook his head, still not letting go of her. "We were together alone for a while, in the cell." He said. "I'd think he'd be rather sick of me." Bill smiled and shook his head.

"Now that I'm captain of the Blue Sphere, you can both come visit me when ever you want." Bill answered.

"Not if you decide to engage in piracy." Norrington had joined them and was gazing at the eldest Turner with a small hint of a smile on his face. Bill shook his head seriously.

"Not for a while." He answered. "I need some space and grow a crew." Bill shrugged. "Then I'll see what I want to do. I may join the navy." Norrington's face flushed.

"A very…proud day it will be, I'm sure." He answered crisply. "When we dock in Port Royal, I will hand over the Blue Sphere to you." Bill nodded in thanks and watched Norrington move away. Elizabeth squeezed her husband's hand and rushed off after him.

"James!" She called. Norrington turned and smiled at her. "I was wondering. Would it be alright, if sometimes you…turned your back on Jack when he visited? Ignore him?" Norrington seemed to ponder her request.

"We shall see." He answered. With a nod, he said, "Good day, Mrs. Turner." And left. Elizabeth laughed lightly and went to the railing. A steady, light rain was coming down now and the small dot that was Jack and Ana in their rowboat was bobbing on the slowly rocking sea. She leaned on the rail and sighed, smiling.

Anamaria rowed steadily, watching Jack's back. Finally, as the waves began to grow rougher, she spoke. "Jack, were you him? Were you the stranger?" Jack stopped his rowing and looked over his shoulder at her.

"Why would you say that, luv?" He asked. Anamaria shrugged and stayed silent until he had begun rowing again.

"Were you there when my husband died?" Jack was silent. "Please, Jack. I need to know." Jack finally sighed and looked around. He stood and rocked unsteadily in the rowboat until he had turned around completely and sat down to face her, the rain growing harder.

"Yes." He said finally, sighing. "He told me to look after you."

"And you ended up stealing my boat!" Anamaria cried. Jack smiled slightly.

"Years later." He answered. He grabbed the bottle from the bottom of the boat and put it in his lap, staring down at the water below him. "Do you think we're here?"

"Jack, do you have a child?" Jack snorted derisively. "Well?"

"No, why would I want one? There small and wrinkly and they smell funny."

"They don't when they're older." Anamaria said. She sighed. Jack wasn't forthcoming about his past and he probably never would be. She looked down through the water and then up past the ships nearby to the island. They'd left some crew on the beach but they had all been washed away by the waves and probably eaten by sharks.

Looking back at Jack, she saw he was smiling even though the boat was now rocking violently, the rain was heavy and lightning cracked over their heads. "Why are you grinning, you daft fool?" She asked.

Jack smiled wider and laughed lightly. "This is fun." He said as a large wave hit the side of their boat and almost capsized them.

"This is not fun!" Ana almost shrieked. Jack's smile vanished but the glint in his eyes noted that he was still amused. "These last few days have knocked you silly!"

"No luv." She growled at his de-humanizing word. "These last few days, though painful to be sure, was just what I needed. This rain is a nice reminder that we are still alive." He threw his head back and screamed it into the rain. "I AM STILL ALIVE!"

Anamaria allowed herself to smile and she crawled across the rowboat unsteadily towards him. When she was closer to him she said, "Did you hear anything of what I said…on the island…when you were…"

"Dying?" Jack asked. Anamaria looked grim. "Yes, luv." He looked down into the rough water below. "I heard everything." The grin had now diminished. "Even…that...part." He said. Anamaria felt herself blushing but thought Jack wouldn't notice. Her hopes were dashed, however. "Any more heat coming off you luv, I won't need the sun to tan."

"Captain…" Jack took her face in his hands and pulled her so close they were only an inch apart. Anamaria could feel his warm breath caressing her face.

"You need a ship to be a Cap'n, luv. I don't have a ship…I do have something else, however…and no need to be called a Cap'n by her." Anamaria smiled and leaned in closer, meeting Jack's lips with hers. She forgot about the rain and the cold chill that was seeping down her neck. Everything was suddenly right. When they broke apart Jack acted as though nothing had happened but grabbed the bottle and held it up to his eyes, peering through the glass at the liquid inside. Anamaria fussed with her hair and tried to hide her smile. Suddenly, Jack leaned over the side of the rowboat, so far Anamaria thought he would fall out and into the storming sea.

"Jack!" Ana yelled, reaching forward and grabbing his sleeve. He looked over at her and smiled insanely.

"Curses don't kill me." He said. "Bit a water won't either." He held the bottle up for her to see. "How much did you use on me darling?" He asked.

Anamaria overlooked the 'darling' part and leaned forward to look at the bottle to. She could see part of Jack's face, distorted through the wet glass. "You were very dead Jack." She said. Jack raised his eyebrows, lowered the bottle and uncorked it, taking a sniff of the contents.

"I'll be alive forever now, thanks to you." He said, stretching out his hand and letting the bottle drop in to the ocean's turbulent water. "Hope it works."

They waited…and waited. It felt like forever they sat there, staring at the gray water hoping…praying for something to happen. After several minutes in silence, Anamaria opened her mouth to speak but Jack held up his hand and pointed to the water. There were bubbles. They started small and then began to grow, becoming bigger and popping, the bubbles spreading through the water around them until it looked as if the whole ocean itself was boiling.

Suddenly a head popped up; bobbing in the water and wiping soaked hair from his face. When he caught sight of Jack and Ana he smiled and waved. It was Moises. Then there were more, here and there, tons of head popping the surface and blinking in the dim light. Christopher's head emerged nearby, his boyish face beaded with water. He swam over and held onto the rowboat.

"Where's the _Pearl_?" He asked, looking around. Jack opened his mouth but suddenly a mast rose from the water, black and gleaming. It was like a knife pinching the sky as it grew. The water beneath the rowboat rocked wildly, tipping the small thing over. Anamaria screamed but didn't have far to fall before she was thrust back into the light, sitting on the deck of the _Black Pearl_. They'd been directly over the wreckage.

"Here." Jack answered Christopher, his voice underneath the rowboat which had been overturned in the sudden appearance of the _Pearl's _deck. "We were on it all along." Christopher looked around, astonished, then turned his gaze to Anamaria.

"Last thing I remember, there was an explosion…then total blackness." He said as two crew members rushed forward and pulled the rowboat off Jack. His face was flushed but he was smiling.

"I think we should grab the rest of the crew…possibly pick up Bill, Gibbs, Elizabeth and the whelp and think bout going home eh?" Jack said, coming over to Anamaria. She smiled.

"Home?" She asked, dazed. Jack nodded.

"The open sea…free of curses." He answered as calls of now alive crew members were carried to them on the wind and the parrot flew over head, squawking. Anamaria nodded and made for the wheel. She was already home.

A FEW MONTHS LATER:

Will looked over at his father, his foot moving up and down with the rhythmic ticking of the blasted clock on the wall. It had been three hours, what was taking so long? Jack was nearby, his head resting on the top of Anamaria's, hers on his shoulder. They looked so peaceful there…hands intertwined.

"Didn't take this long with you, Will." Bill said, talking to his hands. Will sighed.

"Didn't take this long with any blasted kid!" Jack said quietly, opening his eyes slightly but not moving. He didn't want to wake Ana. "Has to be done right, eh? You look like ye could use a drink."

"I could." Will admitted, looking at the clock. Only a minute had gone by. What was going on? He couldn't hear anything. "How do you remain so calm?" He asked his father. Bill shrugged so Will turned to Jack who also shrugged.

"Why worry?" Jack asked. Ana stirred slightly, her head repositioning itself on his shoulder. He froze and stayed very still and silent for a moment before Ana stopped, her breathing still deep and steady before he continued. "It'll happen when it happens, why rush?"

"You've never had kids, Jack." Bill pointed out. "You don't know."

Jack's eyes turned uneasily towards the top of Anamaria's head for a moment and then he said very matter of factly, "Why would I want kids? After looking after yours, Bill, for a few days, I know now I never want them." Will glared at the man but Jack had closed his eyes, smiling.

Will watched the clock for another thirty minutes before Christian came out, a large grin on his face. Jack nudged Ana awake and Bill sat up. Will, on the other hand, sprang to his feet and almost grabbed the doctor.

"How is she? Is she alright?" He asked. Christian grinned.

"She's fine. Both of the girls are doing all right." Will started and his brow furrowed. Jack could have laughed, the kid was so clueless.

"Means you have a girl, Will." He said. Will smiled and turned around to face the pirate.

"Thanks Jack. Couldn't have gotten that." Jack shrugged and Will turned back to the doctor. "Can I see her?" Christian stepped aside and Will entered the room, closing the door behind him. After about another hour, he came back out and beckoned to Jack.

"She just wants you." He said. Jack frowned and looked at Anamaria who nodded and pushed him slightly. Jack entered the room and wrinkled his nose as he saw Elizabeth sitting in the bed, holding the baby in her arms.

"Has all its parts then?" He asked, coming closer. "Fingers…toes…doesn't look the whelp?" Elizabeth laughed. "Cause that would be a bad thing."

"No, she looks just like she's supposed to." Elizabeth said, watching Jack sit down in the chair beside her. When he was settled, she held out the baby. "You have to hold her."

"No." Jack said firmly, sitting back in his chair as though the baby was a disease. "I think I'll wait, have a lot to teach her when she gets older…pirate business, you know. Don't want to drop her, may turn out like Will if I do." Elizabeth smiled.

"You won't drop her, Jack. She weighs less than that damn sword you carry. Please." Jack sighed and took the baby from Elizabeth, holding her carefully. "See, not so bad, is it."

"Worse." Jack muttered. He handed the baby back to Elizabeth and smiled. "Well, didn't drop her."

"No, you didn't." Elizabeth said. Suddenly she looked serious. "You scared me Jack."

"What do you mean?" Jack asked, confused. He wasn't really sure he wanted to go down this road with her.

"Will and I were afraid for you. Never thought I'd worry about the well being of you, of all people. If you hadn't lost the _Pearl_, if you hadn't pulled me from the water…if you hadn't saved me…she wouldn't be here. Thank you." Jack shifted uncomfortably.

"Stop complimenting me." Jack said, smiling. "I may start getting ideas…think you care about me."

"I do." Elizabeth said. "Me and Will, we care for you so much. This time, after this journey we've just been through…don't you dare be a stranger, okay?" Jack nodded, his eyes on the baby. Elizabeth mimicked him and sighed again. "Still don't have a name. Started months ago, but…we wanted something that would mean something to her. And us." Jack got up and made his way to the door.

"Ana loves babies, wants one of her own." He said over his shoulder. "She'll want to see it. I'm going to get Will a drink, poor kid's gone crazy." Elizabeth's voice stopped him before he left.

"Do you have a name for her? One that's close to you?" She asked. Jack stopped and turned to look at her. With his eyes on the baby, he said the first name that popped into his mind.

"Ruth." Elizabeth's mouth twitched slightly, but she managed not to smile as she listened. "My mother's name was Ruth."

"Thank you Jack." Elizabeth said. "I love that name." Jack nodded to her and left, looking over at Anamaria.

"Ana, there is a little baby in there who hasn't been fawned over yet." Anamaria grinned and got up, waling past him and entering the room. On her way through she slapped his butt making him jump. Bill was smiling. "What are you smiling at Grandpa?" Jack asked.

"I can see another baby in the future." Jack's smile vanished.

Elizabeth smiled as she saw Anamaria slap Jack. Anamaria closed the door and sat down in the chair Jack had occupied. "Might I?" She asked, indicating the baby. Elizabeth held out Ruth and Anamaria took her. "Oh! She is so beautiful." Ana cooed. The baby's eyes were closed tight, wrinkly reddish pink skin soft. The baby was fast asleep and Anamaria had the slight impression that she was going to look like Will.

"Ruth." Elizabeth said. Anamaria smiled and looked up.

"That's a beautiful name." She said, looking back down at the baby. "The bible, I think?"

Elizabeth's smile widened and she shook her head. "No," She said. "Believe it or not…Jack gave me that name. It was his mother's."

"His mother?" Anamaria asked. Elizabeth smiled. "I'm surprised, Jack actually having anything to do with a baby." Again, her mind drifted to Marko's words in the dark captain's cabin, that fateful night…Morgan…

Elizabeth smiled and laughed slightly. "Will doesn't know about the name." She said. Anamaria raised an eyebrow. "I know he'll like it though, I mean, I mentioned it before." Elizabeth made a small noise. "Ruth got her first look at Uncle Jack today…" She grinned. "Wonder what she thought."

"Hopefully something better then what I thought the first time I saw him." Anamaria answered just as there was a loud crash from the other room and Jack's laughter. The two women shook their heads. "Norrington greeted us on the way in."

"I know, he told me you had arrived yesterday. How long have you been waiting off the coast?" Anamaria smiled.

"A few weeks. We were in Dead Man's Kay for a while, waiting. Jack wanted to head out to more open waters and pillage but…" Anamaria kissed the baby's head. "I didn't let him."

"How drunk do you think they are yet?" Elizabeth asked as Anamaria handed the baby back to her. The female pirate shook her head.

"Oh, with Jack around?" She said, smiling. Getting up, she crossed to the door. "Rest, we'll come back tomorrow before heading out again. Norrington only gave us a few days." Elizabeth smiled and waved.

Will dropped the glass and tripped, pushing the chair across the room as he fell. Jack laughed loudly and sat down beside him as Will spilt the rest of his rum onto the floor. Bill was just watching them, smiling. "Like 'aving kids now, Will?" Jack asked. Will laughed and looked over at his friend.

Will leaned his head on Jack's shoulder and laughed. Bill shook his head and looked at his brother. "Doesn't take much does it?" Jack shook his head and grabbed Will's rum as Anamaria stepped out of the room. She surveyed the two men sitting on the ground and shook her head. "Come on, Cap'n." She said, "We have to get to the Pearl and inform the rest of the crew."

Jack groaned and pulled himself to his feet as Bill moved across the room and grabbed his son. Will waved merrily to them as they left the house, passing Governor Swann who looked shocked at their presence. Anamaria burst out laughing when they had got to the end of the driveway.

"Did you see his face?" She asked. Jack looked over his shoulder and waved at Swann who looked utterly shocked.

"I think he stopped breathing." He said. With that, they walked off into the sunset. From the shadows of the Turner house, Marko watched them.

THE END! (or is it?) LOL, No it's the end.

(TO EVERYONE! IT IS FINALLY OVER, THE FATED PARTING HAS FINISHED! OF COURSE, THERE IS A SEQUAL! WHICH I MEANTIONED AT THE TOP! I put a different movie quote into this chapter, it is from the movie From Hell. If you tell me what it is, I'll give you a prize! Thank you all and I hope you read the sequel!)

Toxic-Beetle: Well, here it is. I really hope you enjoyed it but, as you saw with the last line, it opened up for the sequel so, if you wish, go on over and check it out. It's called Eulogy For An Angel. Thank you for sticking with this story.

forceflow46: I'll send the email again when I get a chance. LOL. I hope you enjoyed this chapter and I really hope you like the sequel! See you there and thanks again.

OpraNoodlemantra Thank you, at least it was a good addiction (I hope) LOL. I was addicted to writing it even though I think it took me like a year! Holy, a full length book! Of course I saved Jack, he's to hot to die…yet…lol. Ana does deserve to get her revenge. She was the only one who didn't have a 'happy revengy' ending even though she got Jack. Yes, the sequel is called Eulogy For An Angel and it's already up. Go check it out. Thank you and I hope you enjoyed it as much as I enjoyed you reading it.

morph (for chapter one) It's okay you had to stop for now, it'll be a long time before you read this answer to your review though. Yeah, I know I mix up their they're and there. Why on earth does the English language need 3? Just like to and too. No wonder this is considered the hardest language to learn. Yes I was born and raised and still reside in Saskatchewan in a small town in the middle of the prairies. I know where Adelaide is, I had to do a report on it once. See you later and I hope you read the sequel.

padme17: Yes, Jack can hold his breath a long time it seems but as the hottest pirate in the Caribbean, its only fair. Yeah, women always seem to get the shaft, bleeding in the captain's cabin and Jack gets all the attention as usual. I've been to Dallas Texas…well, passed through more like. Well, it finally ended but it's sequel is ready! Eulogy For An Angel if you wanna check it out. LOL, it is the never-ending story!

AND TO EVERYONE I MAY HAVE MISSED OR IS READING AND NOT REVEIWING, THANK YOU!


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